Forced to Flee
by BookDreamer98
Summary: Set just after Shadow Kiss, the attack still took place, but with a different outcome. Everyone is forced to leave the Academy for their safety, but with nowhere else to go, Rose is sent to Russia with Dimitri.
1. Chapter 1

**Hi everyone, so this is the first chapter of a new story I will be writing. It is set just after the attack on the Academy in Shadow-kiss, except no one is taken, meaning that they do not go to the caves, and Dimitri is not turned! I've really wanted to write a story set in Siberia, but didn't want to do the typical 'Love Fades' one, so I thought I would give this a go. I'm thinking it will be written in both Rose and Dimitri's point of views. I really hope you like it!**

 **Rose's Point of View.**

The attack on the Academy had shaken everyone. I was on my way back from the cabin with Dimitri when I had the worst feeling roll over me, it happened to be Strigoi breaking through the Academy's wards.

The guardians managed to kill the majority of the Strigoi that attacked us; I killed a whole lot of them too, with the help of Christian Ozera, who I was guarding at the time. The rest of the Strigoi fled the grounds before the sun came up. Luckily, they didn't take anyone with them. They did, however, leave bodies behind. At least 10 guardians were killed in the attack.

It had been two days since the attack. There had been no other signs of Strigoi, but everyone was on high alert, and the whole Academy was on lockdown. Although a lot of the royal Moroi students had already left, to go to court to be with their families.

It had also been two days since I lost my virginity, to Dimitri Belikov, my mentor. That's what we were doing in the cabin when I felt the Strigoi coming. He had taken me there to calm me down after I'd taken the darkness from Lissa which is caused by Spirit. It had sent me into a sort of frenzy, I'd wanted to kill Jesse Zeklos, he did deserve it, but I'm kind of glad I didn't get my hands on him. And so Dimitri and I had finally given in to each other, it had been building for some time.

The remaining students that were still staying at the Academy had been called to the great hall for an assembly, about what, I don't know yet. I met Lissa, Christian and Eddie outside the doors so we could sit together. Adrian had left yesterday to be with his family at Court.

Alberta and Headmistress Kirova were standing at the front of the hall, waiting for everyone to take their seats. Guardians were standing around the edge of the room, standing to attention, Dimitri was among them. My eyes are always drawn to him as I enter a room, I always find him looking back at me. We hadn't really had chance to discuss what had happened between us yet.

Once everyone was seated, Kirova cleared her throat, efficiently silencing everyone in the room. 'We have called you all here today to discuss arrangements for the next few weeks. Although we are confident that there will not be another Strigoi attack, we want to ensure that we are best equipped if there is another, and that everyone is as safe as possible over the next few months. And so we have very carefully made the decision to send every student away from the Academy, until after the New Year. Arrangements will be made for you to stay with your families in Court, or in another equally safe place.' After the New Year? Its November now, what the hell am I going to do for the next two months? There's no way I can spend all that time with my Mum, wherever she may be.

'Do not fear, arrangements have been made for each and every one of you, no matter what your circumstances. You will be provided with your information as you leave the room, although most of you know where you are going.' She dismissed us then.

I was expecting Lissa to be more nervous about where she would be going, after the death of her parents and brother, she, like me, didn't really have a permanent home other than the Academy. But when I delved a little deeper into her mind, I found that she would be staying with Christian and his Aunt until we would be coming back. She was slightly worried about where I would be going though, as was I.

As I was about to leave the hall, I heard my name and a light hand was placed on my arm to get my attention. I turned to see Alberta's face looking at me. She pulled me to the edge of the room where Dimitri joined us. This wasn't looking good.

Alberta didn't waste any time, and got straight to the point. 'Rose, I'm sure you are wondering where you will be spending the next two months. We considered sending you to Court along with some of the other Novices, but came to the conclusion that you would perhaps be better off staying with Guardian Belikov.' She nodded towards Dimitri, who remained still; this clearly wasn't new information to him.

She saw that I looked confused, and continued. 'Guardian Belikov is taking annual leave for the next two months, and is going back to Russia. We agreed that it would be in your best interest for you to join him there. That way, he can keep up with your training, as well as keep an eye on you.' This whole thing sounded weird to me, why would they agree to this?

I'm not going to complain; going to Baia would be much better than spending months at Court alone and bored. 'And Dimitri has agreed to this?' I asked, sceptically.

Alberta and Dimitri both nodded. 'Yes, he agreed it would be beneficial too.' I nodded. 'When are we leaving?' I asked him, speaking directly to him this time.

'Tomorrow, we have to stay tonight for the Molnija ceremony.' The word made my hand subconsciously wonder to the back of my neck, where I already had two tattoos, representing the two lives I had taken, Strigoi lives.

We discussed arrangements for a while longer before I was dismissed. Lissa, Christian and Eddie were waiting for me outside the hall. I explained that I would be going away with Dimitri. Lissa was excited for me; she was worried I would have to be alone for the next few months. She was also upset that we wouldn't get to spend Christmas together, but considering the circumstances, it didn't seem like such a big deal to me.

I also found out that Eddie would be staying at Court, but that his brother, who is a guardian, is being stationed there, so at least he would get to spend time with him and wouldn't be on his own. I would really miss Eddie, we had formed a closer relationship since the death of our best friend, Mason, and we both felt the need to protect each other, even more so than before.

Lissa sent me away shortly to pack and prepare for the Molnija ceremony which would be taking place tonight. Wow, a lot had changed in just a few short days.

 **So there we have Chapter 1. Sorry if it's a bit boring, I was mainly just trying to set the scene for the rest of the story. I'm planning on writing a lot of cute little scenes between Rose and Dimitri, as well as a lot of tension, I'm also really looking forward to writing more in Dimitri's point of view, as I haven't done much of that yet! Please, please let me know what you think, and feel free to suggest any ideas or improvements that you think could help, I really like to know what you guys think! Thanks so much for reading!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Dimitri's Point of View**

'Sorry about this, Belikov. I just felt like I had to clear a few things up with you before you go to Russia with Rose.' Alberta Petrov, Head Guardian here at St Vladmir's Academy, had called me into her office.

'It's no problem at all, Guardian Petrov.' I held a lot of respect for this woman, and I knew she is not a time waster, so whatever it is she wants to talk to me about must be important to her.

'Thank you. Now, I know that you are a professional man, Dimitri, and I know how seriously you take your job. I also know that you won't technically be on duty while on annual leave, but while you are with Rose, a student, I expect you to be 100% professional. I know the affect Rose Hathaway can have on people, I've seen it before. And don't deny that she has changed something in you, because I've also seen changes in her too.' This was not looking good. Before I could interrupt, she continued.

'I have taken a risk letting you take Rose half way across the world unsupervised, Belikov. But I trust that you will remain professional, I also trust that Rose can take care of herself if the need arises. I've seen you two together, I've also seen you fight together, I see how you react to each other, and honestly, something works. So what I'm saying is no funny business. Please.'

Petrov has hinted to me before that she knows about mine and Rose's feelings towards one another on some degree, but has never outright accused us of anything. And so I was surprised when she suggested I take Roza with me, but I know she sees Roza as a daughter in some ways, she is protective of her and only wants what is best for her, my Roza has that affect on people.

After assuring Guardian Petrov that I would be nothing but professional while with Rose, she dismissed me. Our meeting had taken 15 minutes, and so it was time for me to head over to the room where the Molnija ceremony was being held.

Molnija ceremonies were sombre occasions, nothing to be celebrated. But a moment every guardian shared, although it does mean different things to different people.

I will never forget any of my kills, although they don't exactly haunt me, they do follow me everywhere I go. They represent the lives I was able to save, but also the lives I was not able to save.

The room was full of Guardians, more so than usual as almost every guardian on campus had killed a Strigoi during the attack, meaning every one of them had to be here today.

I spotted Roza in the crowd immediately; I wasn't actively searching for her, my eyes just always seemed to focus on her whenever I entered a room with her in it. She was standing with her mother, Janine Hathaway; it looked like she was being given a lecture of some sort.

Roza was looking at me now, and Guardian Hathaway followed her gaze to me, gesturing for me to join them. Roza's mother shook my hand as I approached them, I nodded at Rose. 'Guardian Belikov, I just wanted to thank you for letting Rosemarie accompany you on your trip to Russia, are you sure you don't mind?'

I didn't mind at all. 'It's really no problem, I would feel better knowing that Rose is continuing her training over the break, and now I can oversee it.'

She nodded along with what I was saying, in agreement. 'Yes, she has come a long way so far. I am grateful that she will be taken care of, there's really just no way she could spend the time with me, I'll be back with the Szelsky family as of tomorrow night.' I saw Roza's eyes light up for just a second when she heard her mother's brief praise. I knew she wanted nothing but her mother's approval, and she so rarely got it.

I ended up sitting next to Roza during the ceremony, with her mother on her other side. I wanted nothing more than to wrap my arms around her small frame and hold her close, I knew the ceremony would be bringing back memories from the time she got her first Molnija marks, when her best friend Mason was killed, Roza killed the Strigoi responsible. I needed to stop thinking like this. I had promised Alberta I would be professional. But after that night in the cabin, it's becoming increasingly difficult to keep my mind from wondering.

I respect the law, and understand how wrong it is for Roza and I to be together while she is still a student, and I her mentor. I had never planned on getting so attached to her; I had never planned on falling in love with her. I certainly hadn't planned taking her virginity in the cabin that night. But I could help it if nothing else happened until graduation, or at least until she turns 18. It's going to be hard, and I'm going to have to talk to Roza about it soon.

The guardians were being called up to receive their marks in alphabetical order, and so I was one of the first few to get called up. I had encountered this process a handful of times throughout my career, and so I was no longer nervous and I no longer flinched when the needle first pierces the skin on the back of my neck.

I looked out to the crowd of Guardians seated in front of me; I saw Roza's beautiful face gazing up at me, her eyes wide and unblinking with awe. I struggled tearing my eyes away from her.

We would all be receiving a battle mark today, rather than individual Molnija marks, so it didn't take very long and the process was over in just a few short minutes. The back of my neck was bandaged and I took my seat next to Rose once more.

Janine Hathaway was called up before Rose; she was also unflinching during the whole process. Rose's knee was bouncing up and down the whole time, I knew she was nervous. I debated my next movement for quite some time, until I decided she needed me and that is what is most important. I placed my hand on her leg and gave it a gentle squeeze. Her gaze snapped up towards mine and her leg stopped shaking immediately. I took my hand away before too long, it would give people the wrong idea. Rose only looked away from my face when her name was called and it was her turn to receive her mark. I gave her a reassuring smile as she stood up.

Rose was once again the only Novice present at the ceremony, and definitely the only Novice receiving a mark. Although none of the Guardians seemed surprised to see her, most were present at her first Molnija ceremony after the Spokane incident.

She put on a brave face as she made her way over to the chair where the tattooist was waiting for her, and most people probably missed her flinch as the needle touched her skin, but I didn't miss it.

Her gaze found mine and she seemed to sit up a little straighter as our eyes locked.

After she had received her mark, we watched the rest of the Guardians receiving theirs, as is polite to do so. The whole process was over in a couple of hours.

When the ceremony was over, Janine said goodbye to Rose and left with some duty to attend to. I offered to walk Roza to her room; I had to set some ground rules for while we are away together.

I started talking once we were far enough away from other people that we wouldn't be overheard. 'Look, Roza, Alberta called me into her office earlier today and kind of set down some ground rules for while we are away. She basically told me I have to be strictly professional, with no funny business.' I found it difficult talking about this stuff with her.

Rose gave a half-hearted laugh which I knew she was putting on. 'No funny business, do you think I'm going to pounce on you as soon as we're alone together Comrade? Seriously, nothing to worry about.' I knew she would brush it off and make some kind of joke, but I had to get through to her.

We had reached her dorm room now and so I came in after her. I put my hands on either side of her face; I had to get through to her. I don't like letting my walls down but I know that that's often the only way to get her to listen to me.

'Roza, you know I love you, but we need to keep a reasonable distance between us until you graduate, for your sake. I hate it as much as you do, believe me. But it has to be done.' I saw her face fall slightly, but a small smile graced her beautiful lips. My thumb stroked her cheek softly.

'It's fine Dimitri, really. I understand.' I got the feeling she didn't understand at all, but I had said what I needed to say and there was no point making it any worse than it had to be.

I tucked a strand of her mesmerising hair behind her ear before letting my hands fall to my sides. 'I hope you've been packing, Roza, I'll come by and pick you up at 11 o'clock tomorrow morning, if that's ok? Then we're being driven to Missoula airport.'

'Actually, is it ok if I meet you by the car, Comrade? It's just that Lissa is insisting on walking me to the car and literally watching me leave campus.' I had forgotten how hard it would be for Roza to leave her friends, especially her bondmate, they were practically her only family.

'Of course that's ok, Roza. Just don't be late.' I wanted to make this as easy as possible for her, and if that means Vasilisa walks her to the car, then that's what we'll do.

'Believe me; Liss has never been late to anything in her life.' That I could believe.

I bid her goodnight before leaving her to carry on packing. I, of course, had started packing well over a week ago, and so all I had left to pack was a toothbrush tomorrow morning. I couldn't wait to go back to Baia again, it had been years since I'd last seen my family, and I can't wait for them all to meet Roza. It's going to be an eventful few months, that's for sure.

 **There we have Chapter 2! I just wanted to thank every single person who has favourited, followed and reviewed this story already. I was so pleasantly surprised to see how many people have followed and reviewed already, as I wasn't really expecting anyone to like the story that soon! So thank you again, I really hope you enjoy this chapter too. And once again, please feel free to give any suggestions that you think might help me improve!**

 **P.s Richelle Mead owns Vampire Academy (of course)! I don't own anything, just an idea that I'm putting into words!** _ **(Sorry, thought I'd better do a disclaimer at some point throughout this story)!**_


	3. Chapter 3

**Rose's Point of View.**

I slept well considering the fact that I couldn't stop playing Dimitri's words over and over in my head. I packed the rest of my things after he left last night, and then went straight to bed. He'd said we need to _'keep a reasonable distance'_ does that mean he's going to be in his mentor mode for the next couple of months? Surely not. I made a joke about it when he spoke to me, but in all seriousness, how would we be able to stay away from each other for that long?

I had only just gotten dressed when there was a light knock on my dorm room door, I was dressed in black ripped jeans with a nicely fitted top, and I'll put a zip up hoodie over the top before I leave. I wasn't expecting Lissa for another couple of hours. I was actually quite surprised to see my mother standing there awkwardly.

I just kind of stood there staring at her until she got fed up and asked if she could come in, I nodded and stepped out of the way so she could enter my small room. Janine Hathaway was dressed in her typical Guardians attire, with her short auburn hair tied into a neat ponytail. Calling her my mum had never really felt right; don't you have to act like a mother to be called one?

'All packed I see.' She said, gesturing to my zipped up suitcase. She was making awkward conversation, I really wished she wouldn't.

'We both know you didn't just come here to see if I've finished packing, so could you get to the point, please?' I didn't exactly want to sound rude, but it made me anxious to see her scrutinising everything in my room.

She put the photograph of Lissa and I when we were 6 years old at a fancy dress party down, and looked at me for the first time since she'd entered my room. 'I came to say goodbye really. And to just make sure you look after yourself while you're away. I'll try and text you when I can and see how you're getting on. But please Rose, try not to make Guardian Belikov's life too difficult, he's doing a very nice thing by letting you go with him, don't make him regret it.'

How dare she? She doesn't even know me and she just assumes I'm going to make Dimitri's life hell. And she's never cared about if I look after myself until now. 'Believe me, mum, I know he's doing a nice thing, I have a lot of respect for Guardian Belikov, he trains me practically all day every day, we'll be fine.' I'll admit I am an asshole a lot of the time, but I do know how to suck up to people when I have to, and right now, I was sucking up to my mum. The less she 'worries' about me, the better, she doesn't need any distractions right now, and quite frankly neither do I.

I don't think she was expecting me to agree with her. 'Thank you Rose, I am proud of you, you know.' That stopped my train of thought; I didn't know she was proud of me, why would she be? She could clearly see the doubt on my face; she placed her arm on my shoulder. 'Don't look so surprised, Rosemarie. You've come a long way since they dragged you back here.'

I smiled at her then. 'Thanks Mum.'

She made her way towards my door and opened it; she stood there awkwardly for a moment before she pulled me into a swift hug. I hugged her back for just a moment before she pulled away and left. Janine Hathaway never wasted time.

Time passed quickly after that, I was more worried than I thought to go to Russia with Dimitri. What if his family don't like me? What if he gets tired of being around me for so long?

I was pulled out of my whirlpool of thoughts when there was a knock at the door, I could tell from the bond that it was Lissa, and she wasn't alone. I opened the door to see Lissa, Christian, Eddie and none other than Natasha Ozera, great. My last few minutes with Lissa would be spent with Tasha too.

Although Tasha and I are technically friends, she's been pining over Dimitri ever since she got here, and she knows I'm the reason he's turned her down, and she just _loves_ to show me that she holds the power over me when it comes to Dimitri. She can hug him in public, she can flirt with him in public, and no matter how much he brushes her attempts off, she doesn't quit.

Lissa pulled me into a hug when I opened the door, I gratefully returned the gesture, I really would miss her.

Christian and Eddie both took one of my bags each; I didn't even have to ask. Lissa and I walked a little behind the others, I just wanted to be close to her for a moment before I had to leave, and I was also worried about leaving her. I'd been there to protect her since I could remember.

We reached the front gate of the Academy all too soon, when we arrived, we found Dimitri waiting beside a sleek black SUV car, with the Guardian who will be driving us to the airport, who just so happened to be Stan Alto, great.

As soon as Dimitri was in sight, Tasha ran up to him and practically threw herself at him. He awkwardly put his arms around her, I looked away.

Eddie and Christian had just finished putting my bags in the car, now was time for the dreaded goodbyes. I hugged Eddie first. 'I'll miss you so much Eddie, promise me you'll try and have a nice time with your brother.' Eddie had been like a brother to me since we had first joined the Academy.

'You too Rose, hope the Russian jailer isn't too hard on you.' I laughed and he released me from the bear hug.

Christian approached me next and to my utter surprise, he also pulled me into a hug. 'Look after yourself Rosie, you deserve a break.'

I returned the gesture. 'Promise you'll look after her for me Christian, or I'll kick your ass.' He laughed and faked fear as he pulled away, but I knew he would look after her, and thanks to the bond I'd know if he didn't.

Before I could take a breath, Lissa had thrown herself into my arms and gave me a bone crushing hug, which I returned without a second thought. 'I'll miss you so much Rose, it's going to be so weird not having you around.' I knew she had started to cry, I swallowed the lump in my throat.

'I'll miss you too, Liss.' I pulled back slightly to look her in the eye. 'If there is anything you need at all, tell me, or don't and I'll know anyway, and I promise you I will be on the first flight back no matter how hard Dimitri tries to stop me.' I heard Dimitri's light chuckle at that and felt a sense of satisfaction roll over me.

I slowly released Lissa from my embrace. 'Love you, Liss.' She wiped her eyes quickly, and then smiled. 'Love you too, Rose.'

After watching Tasha hug Dimitri again, and giving her a brief goodbye myself, we took our seats in the SUV. Dimitri was sitting in the passenger seat next to Stan, leaving me to sit in the back on my own.

As we were driving away, I looked out the back window to see Lissa waving with Christians arm wrapped protectively around her, I'm glad she has him. I cleared my throat once again, and discreetly wiped my eyes. Dimitri turned to look at me then. 'They'll be ok, you know.' I appreciated his effort to reassure me; he always seemed to know what I was thinking about.

'I know, they're like my family though, it'll be weird not being there to look out for them, especially Liss.' He nodded in understanding.

The drive to the airport took about an hour. I didn't talk much during the journey, I spent most of the time in Lissa's head, she was getting ready to leave for Court, but she missed me too. I spent the rest of the journey admiring the back of Dimitri's head while he made small talk with Stan.

When we arrived at the airport, Stan helped us take our bags out of the boot of the car. Despite our hate-hate relationship, Stan patted my shoulder in a friendly gesture and said. 'Look after yourself, Hathaway.'

'Thanks, Sta- Guardian Alto, you too.' He nodded at that and shook Dimitri's hand. And before I knew it I was being led through the bustling crowds of Missoula airport.

 **There we have Chapter 3! I really hope you enjoyed it, thanks again for all your support, I appreciate it so much! I wasn't quite sure how to portray Rose's feelings about her mum, she's normally quite angry at her but I kind of wanted to show how much she's actually matured through the books, and how selfless she actually is. Thanks again for all your support, I really hope you enjoyed the chapter, once again please feel free to give me any suggestions that you think might help me improve! I was also going to hold off posting this chapter until tomorrow, but I love writing so much and love reading your reviews that I couldn't wait!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Dimitri's Point of View.**

Missoula airport was packed with people, and when Rose's small hand slipped into mine, I realised she'd probably never been to a human airport before, especially one this busy. And so I didn't say anything, just gave her hand a gentle squeeze as we headed over to the check- in desk, I had purchased our tickets in advance.

We would be flying to Omsk airport, which is about a 2 hour drive from Baia, from home. The flight from America to the Airport in Russia takes about 11 hours, I have 3 Western books packed in my hand luggage bag, I hope that will be enough.

Rose didn't say much as we queued up to check in our bags and to get our tickets, I knew she was probably nervous and so I didn't really want to disturb her from her thoughts. It had also occurred to me that Rose wasn't used to such busy places as this, the airport we're landing at will most likely be even busier.

Once our suitcases had been carried away on the conveyer belt, we made our way over to the section of the airport with the shops and where each gate was, they place was packed with people waiting for their flights, some nervous, some excited, some simply bored out of their minds.

'We have a few hours to kill before we have to board, would you like to get lunch somewhere? It's going to be a long flight, Roza.' The 'Roza' always seems to just slip out when I'm talking to her.

I heard her stomach rumble from where I was stood beside her, she placed her hand on her stomach, almost trying to shush it, and gave me a sheepish smile. 'Sure.' She said.

I led her over to a little Italian restaurant, I knew she loved pizza.

We made light conversation while we were waiting for our food to come over after ordering. It always amazed me how easy it was to be around Rose. I normally hated being around people for too long because conversation gets awkward and you run out of things to say, but it's never difficult with Roza.

Our Pizza's were placed in front of us before too long, and she wolfed her pizza down. I was rather enjoying watching her eat until a frown creased her forehead, a thought must have come to her mind. 'What's Russian food like?' She asked me out of the blue.

I couldn't help the smile that formed on my lips thinking of the food, ah how I missed Mama's cooking. I wasn't exactly bad at cooking, Mama had always taught me how to make whatever she was making, but I was nothing compared to her. I couldn't wait for Roza to try everything. 'It's quite different to American food, but Mama makes everything so well, I know you'll love it.' That seemed to be a good enough answer as she smiled at me and carried on eating.

'Dimitri, how did you manage to get your stakes through security?' I was wondering when she would pick up on that. I wasn't about to tell her how I did it, I enjoyed teasing her, so I smirked and said, 'Guardian secrets.' To which she folded her arms over her chest and huffed like a little kid who had been denied something they wanted.

The bill came after we had both finished eating; I pulled my wallet out of my duster pocket and saw Roza pull out her purse, like hell was I letting her pay.

'What do you think you are doing with that?' I said, nodding towards her purse.

She smirked at me, damn that smirk. 'Paying.' She replied bluntly. I was about to interrupt her, when she shushed me and continued. 'Don't think I didn't realise it was you who paid for my plane ticket, and I know that can't have been cheap, so please, Dimitri, let me pay for this.' She was as determined as ever. I had always admired the determination she has for everything she does; it was one of the things I loved most about her. Дерьмо, I really needed to stop thinking about her like that if we're going to make it through the next few months without any mishaps.

We stared each other out for some time; we didn't need words to be able to argue with one another. I could tell by the look in her eyes that she wasn't going to give up, so I sat back in defeat, 'Fine.' I sure wasn't happy about her paying for my meal, but she was right in thinking I had paid for her ticket, but I'd be sure to make it up to her at some point anyway.

A cocky grin lit up her face, 'Thanks Comrade. Why should the guy always have to pay for everything anyway? Why do guys have to be the one to pay? It's sexist.' I didn't disagree with that, but I _wanted_ to pay for her. We'd never actually been for a meal together, was this a date? No, this can't be our first date; I'll take her out properly one day.

After Rose paid, much to her delight, I led us over to the gate where we would be waiting to board. I knew Roza would forget something, so I checked with her at least 20 times that she had her passport and boarding pass, which she did, thankfully.

Before I knew it, we were on the plane. I had booked seats specifically so we were next to each other, call me overprotective but I wasn't planning on letting her out of my sight until we walked in the front door at home.

As the plane was taking off, Rose started bite at her fingernails, was she nervous? 'How long did you say this flight will take, Comrade?' I couldn't help smiling down at her. 'About 11 hours, try and get to sleep and the time will fly by.' I was used to travelling for long periods of time, and always found that reading and sleeping passed the time the quickest.

We both looked out of the little window to our right until we could see nothing but the pure whiteness of the clouds below us. I had noticed Rose yawn a few times, she then kicked her shoes off and tucked her knees up underneath herself and I watched her until her breathing evened out and she fell fast asleep.

About 4 hours had passed and I had just finished my first Western novel. The airhostesses came down the aisle offering food and drink; I bought a coffee for myself, and a doughnut and bottle of Diet Coke for Rose when she wakes up. Despite drinking the coffee, I found myself becoming tired. Since being asleep, Rose had rested her head on my shoulder, and I was finding it increasingly difficult not to wrap my arms around her and hold her close to me. So I settled for resting my head on top of hers and closing my eyes, waiting for sleep to cloud over me.

I woke up to a rather awkward situation. Rose was in fact wrapped up tightly in my arms, but one of her hands was placed over mine, and her delicate fingers were idly tracing patterns over the skin of my hand. What an odd gesture. I cleared my throat which made her hand stop its hypnotising movements; I didn't exactly want her to stop.

She sat up and untangled herself from my arms. 'Sorry, I was daydreaming.' She mumbled.

I was embarrassed; I'd practically been holding her captive in my arms for God knows how long. I glanced at the watch on my wrist. 6 hours, I'd actually been asleep for 6 hours; I don't think I've ever even slept that long in my own bed, let alone a horrible uncomfortable airplane seat. 'Have you been awake long?' I asked her, my voice was husky from sleep, I cleared my throat again.

'Not too long, you seemed fast asleep; I didn't want to disturb you.' She said.

I looked down at her then, 'You should have.' I replied a little too bluntly.

I saw her notice the doughnut and bottle of Coke on the fold out table in front of her. 'Those are for you.' I said simply.

She smiled up at me again. 'Thank you Comrade, you didn't have to.' I know I didn't have to, but anything was worth it to see her smile.

After she'd hoovered down her doughnut, the ' _fasten your seatbelt's'_ sign flashed overhead, and we were told we would be landing soon. The time really had flown by.

Once we landed and got our bags, we headed outside into the cold air of a Russia night. I had missed it. I was about 5AM when we landed, and so we would be getting a taxi home, I couldn't ask Mama or my sisters to pick us up at that time in the morning. It was the beginning of winter and so the temperatures were dropping, Roza wrapped herself tighter in her jumper and mumbled something about crazy Russian weather.

She was the first to break the silence when we were comfortably in the back seat of the taxi, after I'd spoken to the driver in Russian, telling him where we'd like to go. 'What if your family don't like me?' She said. How could she even think that?

'You have nothing to worry about; I know for a fact that Mama and Vika can't wait to meet you.' That seemed to ease the tension in her ever so slightly.

'Ok, so give me a quick rundown of who everyone is so I don't forget, you have so many sisters!' I chuckled at that.

'Only three,' I replied. 'Karolina is the oldest; she has two children, Paul who must be around 10 now, and Zoya, who is just a baby. Then there's Sonja, she is pregnant now. Both work full time, so we might not see a lot of them. Then there's Viktoria, she's a year younger than you and goes to St. Basil's academy, but will probably be home for Christmas break soon. Then there's Yeva, my Babushka, who I will warn you, might be a bit anti-social when we first arrive, she doesn't like new people much. Then there's Olena, my Mama.' It was easy talking about my family, I didn't realise how much I'd truly missed them, but the ache in my chest was growing the closer we got to home.

Rose seemed satisfied with my answer and seemed to be playing my words over in her head. I knew she had nothing to worry about, I knew they would love her, because I did. Before I knew it we had pulled up outside the familiar house on the familiar street. It was 7AM and I could see Mama's head peeking out the front door already.

 **There we have Chapter 4! I'll admit this chapter wasn't quite as exciting, so I tried to include a few cute Romitri moments, but when is waiting around in an airport ever majorly exciting? I can't wait to keep on writing now they're finally in Russia! I really hope you've enjoyed reading, and haven't been disheartened by the chapter. Thanks again for all your continued support, I really appreciate it!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Rose's Point of View.**

I could see how excited Dimitri was to see his family again after so long as we pulled up outside the house, it looked homely even from where I was. He paid the taxi driver quickly, he paid with Russian money so I had no idea how much it cost, however I doubt it was cheap.

Once I was out of the car I saw a woman who must be Olena Belikova running towards us. She seemed to be in her late 40's; she had shoulder length brown hair and a cooking apron on. I could tell by just smile lighting up her face that she had missed her only son incredibly.

Dimitri was striding around the car and opened his arms ready for her; she threw herself into his arms. I could hear the Russian words flowing through them and of course I had no idea what they were saying.

A little boy came charging through the front door and down the steps next. I say little, but he must be almost my height already, and Dimitri had said he was only 10. He was followed by a woman carrying a baby and I knew that must be Karolina. A woman with a small baby bump emerged next, that had to be Sonja, and they were both beautiful and reminded me so much of Dimitri.

They were all swarmed around Dimitri now, all talking rapidly in Russian. I couldn't help the smile that crept onto my face; it was so nice seeing him like this, happy and at ease. Wanting to give them some privacy during their reunion, I opened the boot to the taxi and got the bags out. The driver must have been getting impatient as he sped off down the road as soon as I shut the boot.

I placed the bags down at my feet and just enjoyed watching them for a while. I don't think they even realised I was there, I didn't mind one bit. Dimitri must have realised then that I was missing, as he raised his head suddenly and looked around until his eyes fell on me. The smile remained firmly on his face. He walked over to me then and placed his hand on my shoulder. 'This is Rose, my student.' I wasn't sure how I felt about being introduced as his student, but I guess that's what I was.

Olena was the first to greet me; she walked over and wrapped me up in a firm hug which I returned after just a moment's hesitation, I could count on one hand the amount of times my own mother had hugged me, I wasn't expecting her to be so kind. 'Rose, it's so nice to finally meet you, I've heard so much about you.' She had?

'It's great to meet you too, and thank you for letting me stay here, I'm really sorry to inconvenience you like this.' She released her arms from around my shoulders but was still smiling. 'Not at all, I'm happy to have you stay here.' Her accent was a lot stronger than Dimitri's, I assumed the rest of theirs would be too. I kind of feared I would struggle to understand what they were saying, but I didn't at all.

'Hi Roza' I heard from to my right, I looked down and saw Paul's face beaming up at me. He looked so much like Dimtri already; I wonder if this is what he looked like when he was little, even their eyes were the same. 'Hi there, you must be Paul.' He nodded eagerly, clearly pleased that I already knew who he was.

Karolina approached me then, with the baby wiggling in her arms. 'Hi Rose, It's nice to meet you. I'm Karolina and this is Zoya.' She said, gesturing down to the little one. I returned her smile, 'It's nice to meet you too, and hello to you too little Zoya.' I said which made her giggle. I'd never really spent much time around babies, I'm not sure I'd even held one before, but her little laugh was contagious. Sonja also introduced herself but wasn't as quite as friendly as the others, she was probably tired being up at this ridiculous time of the morning _and_ being pregnant.

'Come now, let's go inside you must both be tired. Babushka is waiting for you too, and breakfast is cooking. Why don't you take one of Roza's bags for her, Paul?' I was used to only being called Roza by Dimitri when he was feeling particularly affectionate towards me, but I guess I'd better get used to hearing everyone call me it around here. I quite liked it, but it didn't have the same heart-stopping effect it did when Dimitri calls me it. Paul carried my hand luggage bag inside the house for me; I thanked him, making him smile up at me once more.

The house looked quite big from the outside, but I suppose it had to be to house the whole family comfortably. Inside was the perfect image of a family home, it was cosy and looked well lived in. The front door led to the living room area, there was a fireplace which was already lit, and an older looking lady was sat on one of the sofas closest to the fire. This must be Yeva, I felt nerves running through my body, odd.

The family dispersed in the living room, Sonja sat down on one of the sofas opposite Yeva, gently rubbing her slightly swollen stomach and Paul was playing with some toys in the middle of the room. Karolina and Olena were still hovering around Dimtri.

Dimitri went over and hugged his grandmother, she returned the gesture. After a few more moments of them talking, once again in Russian, he introduced me. 'Babushka, this is Roza. Rose, this is my grandmother, Yeva.' I was still standing awkwardly in the doorway, not knowing what to do with myself. I slowly approached her, 'Hi, it's nice to meet you.' She gazed up at me, her eyes were clearly scrutinising me. She spoke in Russian to me, oh God, didn't she speak English? I kept the smile plastered on my face; Olena quickly came to my rescue. 'Sorry about her Rose, come, I'll show you to Dimka's room.' Wait, what? I'm staying in Dimitri's room? Where would he be staying? Surely not in there with me. Olena led Dimitri and I up the staircase while we were carrying our bags. She explained which room was whose and showed me where the bathroom was, and then opened the door at the very end of the hallway.

'You were going to sleep in Vika's room tonight, but she'll be home later today and I'm afraid we don't have a spare room, so the two of you will be sharing.' I could tell that she was embarrassed by this. 'It's ok, really, I'm sure Dimitri would prefer to keep an eye on me anyway, he's never been very trusting of me.' She smiled at that, I'm glad I could ease her tension ever so slightly, truth is, Dimitri is quite trusting of me these days, I just wanted to make her feel better about the situation.

She opened the door to reveal Dimitri's room. There were two bookcases overflowing with books, and a double bed in the middle of the room. It was all very neat and tidy, not surprising. There was a camp bed set up on one side of the room; I put my bags on it, claiming it as mine. 'I'll let you both get settled in, come down for breakfast when you're ready.' I thanked her again just before she left the room.

Dimitri had been surprisingly quiet to me since we arrived, he spoke up now though. 'There's no way you're sleeping on that, I'll sleep on it.' I had started to get one or two of my things out of my bag and lay them on the make-shift bed. I laughed at him. 'No way, this is your room, your bed, you're sleeping on it.' To prove my point I sat down on my new bed. I could tell he wasn't happy with the arrangements.

He opened the wardrobe and starting unpacking his things, there was lots of empty clothes hangers. 'These are for your things.' He said, gesturing to them. I thanked him and started unpacking my clothes.

'Thank you for bringing me here Dimitri, I love it already.' We had been in the room for a while now and neither of us had spoken, the silence was driving me crazy and I wanted to tell him how much I appreciated it.

'I'm glad you like it here Roza, It means a lot to me.' We smiled at each other until my stomach grumbled; I could smell something good coming from downstairs. That made Dimitri chuckle. 'Come on, we'll go and get breakfast.' I nodded and followed him downstairs.

Paul was sitting at the kitchen table already when we got down there. 'You just missed Karolina and Sonja; they have just gone to work.' Olena explained, she told me that Karolina is a waitress and Sonja is a pharmacist, they both work in the town which is about a 10 minute walk away.

Dimitri spoke with his family for a while whilst we were waiting for our food, they were talking in English now, for my benefit obviously, but I appreciated it. Before long, Olena placed something that looked a lot like pancakes in front of each of us. 'This is blini, Roza. It's a lot like pancakes that you would have back home.' Dimitri explained. I was relieved, I hated to admit it, but I had been nervous about the Russian food.

I took a bite and it was even better than pancakes. I couldn't help the pleased sound that came out of my mouth, which made Dimitri laugh. 'These are so good Mrs Belikova, thank you.' I felt a bit formal calling her that, but I didn't want to seem rude by assuming that I could call her Olena.

'Nonsense Roza, please call me Olena.' Thank God.

Dimitri looked at me again with a small smile on his face. 'I can't wait for you to try other foods; Mama makes the best Black Bread.'

We carried on catching up at the kitchen table for a while longer when we heard the front door open. 'That'll be Vika.' Olena announced. I was excited to meet Viktoria, from what I had heard, I thought we would get along.

I heard her shout something in Russian from the door. 'In here!' Olena called back. Viktoria Belikova then charged into the room and threw herself at Dimitri, who had stood up in preparation for the attack he must have known was coming. Viktoria was just as beautiful as the rest of them, she was a bit taller than me with long brown hair, and I noticed streaks of purple running through her hair too.

Once the younger sister had released Dimitri from her grip, I stood up just in time to be hugged just as tightly as he had been. 'Oh Roza it's so nice to finally meet you!' She practically shrieked at me. I returned the gesture; I was just as excited to meet her if I'm honest. She then moved on to greet the rest of the family present in the room, and left shortly after to see Yeva.

The rest of the day passed smoothly, I was mainly just happily watching Dimitri catching up with his family, I loved watching him so at ease. I became fast friends with Vika, and she told me about all the things I had to see in the area which I was just as happy to hear about as she was to tell me.

Before I knew it, it was getting dark outside, I felt pretty jetlagged and after eating tea with the whole family, I excused myself and went to bed. I checked in with Lissa for a while before falling asleep, we'd texted each other a few times since I'd arrived, she was having a nice time with Christian and Tasha, I was pleased for her. As soon as I was out of Lissa's head, I fell asleep the second my head hit the pillow.

 **There we have Chapter 5! A little bit longer this time, I really enjoyed writing this chapter as I absolutely love the Belikov's! I really hope you enjoyed reading it, thanks again to every single person who has reviewed, favourited and followed the story, it makes my day! I hope you've all had a nice Easter weekend, I've been eating lots of chocolate, working and writing assignments, I wish I was as motivated to write assignments as I am to writing Chapters for this story! Thanks again for reading.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Dimitri's Point of View**

I really had missed this place. I used to hate America and that dull Academy I had been assigned to, but it had really grown on me since I'd dragged Roza back, but it was never home. Baia is my home, and I loved that I could share it with Rose. It was so good to be back and to be able to spend time with my family again, I hated being away from them for so long, but I knew that they needed the portion of my salary that I sent them every month, it made me feel better knowing that they were as financially comfortable as they could be.

And of course they loved Roza, how could they not? Despite her worries, I never had any doubts about whether they would like her or not. With the exception of Babushka of course, I knew how she tended to act around new people, although she must have seen Rose coming. My Grandmother claims to have these _visions_ as she calls them. She's had them for as long as I can remember, and I can't recall a time where she has ever been wrong, so I grew up trusting her judgement and opinion.

I stayed with my family for a while longer after Rose had excused herself and gone to bed. I could tell she had been tired all day, but I knew she wanted to get to know my family more, which I was grateful for.

It also felt good to speak my first language again, I didn't get to speak Russian often in America, and although I didn't mind the English language, it didn't fall on my tongue as naturally as Russian did. Of course, I wouldn't speak Russian in front of Roza, I know it would make her feel uncomfortable. I would love to teach her my language one day, she'd been pestering me for a while about teaching her the swear words, I stuck with my argument and told her she swears enough already, she didn't need to know how to do it in another language.

I felt my eyes becoming heavy and had to stifle a few yawns when I finally bid my family good night and went upstairs. I reached my bedroom door at the end of the hallway hesitated for a moment, I felt odd knowing I would be sharing my childhood bedroom with Rose for the next few months. I'll admit it may have been more ideal for her to share with Vika, but neither of us wanted to burden her with that as Rose was my responsibility, and as much as I hate to admit it, I knew I would feel better having Rose close to me while she's here. She's not as untrustworthy as she used to be when I first met her, but trouble seemed to follow her round wherever she goes, and I felt better knowing I would be able to keep an eye on her.

I took a deep breath and finally plucked up the courage to open the door to my bedroom. The lamp on my bedside table was still on, giving the room a slight glow.

Rose was curled up in her duvet on the small bed on the floor, I felt awful about her having to sleep there, I would have picked her up and put her on my bed but I didn't want to disturb her, she looked comfortable enough. Despite her peaceful appearance, Roza had a small frown on her face and started mumbling in her sleep, as hard as I tried, I couldn't make out any of the words she was saying.

I tore my eyes away from her and quickly got undressed, hoping she wouldn't wake up and see me, that would not go down well with the whole 'keeping a professional distance' thing we'd agreed on.

I had a hard time settling once I'd slipped in between the sheets of my double bed, it seemed too big all of a sudden, and I knew exactly what I was missing, more like who I was missing.

I turned the lamp off once Rose had stopped muttering in her sleep, I rolled onto my side so that I was facing her. All I could hear was her gently inhaling and exhaling, I matched my breathing to hers and fell asleep before I knew it.

I woke up sooner than I would have liked the next morning, but I was pleased to see that Roza was still fast asleep in her bed. After failing to get back to sleep despite my efforts, I got up out of bed. I pulled on a pair of running shorts and the first top I could find, and as quietly as I could, crept out of the room and down the stairs.

Mama was already in the kitchen already and standing in front of the stove when I entered the room; she hugged me when I walked in. I poured myself a cup of coffee and sat at the kitchen table. Mama turned the heat on the stove down and sat opposite me, she placed her hand over mine. 'It's so nice having you home, Dimka. And I'm glad Roza is here too, she seems like a special girl.' My Mother's brown eyes were gazing into my own, was she hinting at something? Surely there's no way she could know that anything was going on between Roza and I.

'It's nice to be home, Mama. I'm glad Rose is here too.' I said, trying to sound as casual as possible. Mama just gave me a knowing look and carried on pottering around the kitchen.

Another hour passed until Rose finally emerged from upstairs. She still looked tired despite her long sleep, but she was breathtakingly beautiful no matter how tired she was, her hair was in a bun on the top of her head, but a lot of her hair had escaped its confines during her sleep. She was wearing pyjama shorts and an oversized top. I could look at her all day and never get bored. She said good morning to Paul, Karolina and the baby on her way to the kitchen, they were in the living room. And plopped herself down in the chair next to me when she entered the room, saying good morning to my Mother and I.

'Good morning Roza, how did you sleep dear?' Mama asked her with a warm smile on her face. A pleasant smile lit up Roza's face when Mama put down some blini in front of each of us. 'I slept really well, thank you. Surprisingly well considering the visitor I had during my sleep.' She grumbled while rolling her eyes. That got my attention, I saw Rose mumbling during the night, but hadn't considered the fact that it might have been Lord Ivashkov talking to her. I still didn't fully understand how he visited people's dreams, one of his spirit abilities, although I'd only ever heard about it from Rose, so I know he must visit her quite often.

My Mother gave Roza a puzzled look when she said that, I didn't blame her. Rose gave Mama a brief explanation of the whole spirit yielding Moroi thing while we were eating our breakfast, she also explained that Vasilisa was a spirit user, and after a moment's hesitation, explained that they were bonded.

I had to give Mama credit for reacting as calmly as she did, some of it was quite hard to believe. She gave me a questioning look to which I just nodded, confirming what Roza was saying.

I wasn't sure quite how I felt about Rose being able to speak to Ivashkov in her dreams, she often complains about them, but I couldn't help feeling somewhat jealous. 'What did Adrian want?' I asked as casually as possible.

Her eyes flashed ever so briefly with something I couldn't recognise before she recovered herself. 'Not much really, he was probably just bored and wanted someone to annoy, and seeing as he can't do that in person anymore, he deemed it suitable to do it in my dreams. I'm surprised he could stay sober for long enough to actually do it.'

'Is he your boyfriend, Roza?' Thank God Mama asked, the scenarios running through my head were starting to drive me crazy, Rose's answer put my mind at ease, I just didn't want to have to be the one to ask the question.

'No way, as much as he pesters me, he's really just a good friend.' I felt my shoulders relax ever so slightly. I knew deep down that there was nothing going on between the two of them, but that didn't stop my mind from wondering and coming up with all of these horrible thoughts.

The rest of the time it took to eat breakfast Mama was mainly talking to Rose, asking lots of questions about herself and her life back at the Academy, Roza seemed more than happy to answer them and had a beautiful smile on her face the whole time. The smile quickly vanished when I said what I did next, once she'd finished her breakfast.

'Come on then Rose, get dressed and we'll go running.' I purposely hadn't mentioned running until the last minute, because I knew she'd kick up a fuss, but I fully planned to continue her training while we were here.

'What? You're seriously going to make me run while I'm here? That's crazy!' She looked at me in disbelief.

I couldn't help but smile at her dramatic reaction. 'Why wouldn't you keep running while you are here? Besides it'll be a good chance for me to show you around the town.' I made a good point and she couldn't deny it. She dragged herself up the stairs and came down 5 minutes later dressed in running shorts and trainers, with a jumper on top. I'm glad I didn't have to remind her to wrap up warm; temperatures were beginning to drop here and I expect it would start snowing the closer we got to Christmas.

We jogged around most of our side of the town. We were out for over an hour. I showed her the park, we also passed the restaurant that Karo works at as well as the pharmacy that Sonja works at, and we even passed her on her way to work. I showed her the general direction of the main shopping street of the town, it was too far for us to run to seeing as how much ground we'd already covered, but no doubt Vika would want to take her shopping at some point.

We'd spent most of the morning exploring the town, I loved showing Roza where I had grown up, and by the look on her face she loved hearing about it. It was almost lunch time by the time we got back to the house, and Rose practically threw herself down onto the sofa when we walked through the door. I got us both a bottle of water and joined her there.

I was pleasantly surprised at how well Roza kept up during our run, and although she was worn out now, I was too.

Vika walked down the stairs then, judging by her messy hair and dressing gown, she'd only just woken up. She joined us in the living room and scrunched up her nose. 'Eww, you guys _stink_.'

That made a playful smile grace Roza's face. 'You would too if you'd just run around half of Russia.' I chuckled at that and Vika laughed outright.

'Yeah well, you'd better have a shower before tonight.' Rose's face reflected my own confusion.

'What's happening tonight?' She asked my ever excited younger sister.

'I'm taking you to a party! Mama already said it was ok as long as we're back by midnight.' Roza looked at me hesitantly, I just shrugged in reply. I wasn't entirely happy about the idea, I know what teenage boys can be like, especially around someone as incredible as Roza, but I had to trust her.

'I don't have anything to wear though; sure I packed a couple of dresses but nothing for a party.' I couldn't help but be hopeful that that meant that she wouldn't be going to the party.

'You can borrow one of my dresses Roza, I'm sure we'll find one that fits you!' I could tell how excited Vika was about the thought of taking Rose to a party with her.

'Fine, I'll come. As long as it's ok with your strict older brother?' She said, raising both her eyebrows at me.

Vika clutched onto my arm and started pleading. 'Please, please, please let her come Dimka! She needs to let loose a bit; the poor girl has spent far too much time with you already!'

I could so easily say no, I could say no and have Roza safely by my side all night. But I knew I had to trust that she could look after herself as well as Vika. And they would only resent me if I said no. 'Fine, but like Mama said, back by midnight and don't get too drunk.' I considered telling them not to drink at all, but I knew my words would be wasted.

Vika jumped up and down before hugging me, and pulling away soon after with her fingers holding her nose. She took Roza by the hand and dragged her upstairs; Roza gave me one last glance before she was dragged out of sight by my lethal sister. I hoped I wouldn't regret letting them go.

 **So there we have Chapter 6! Sorry I haven't updated in a few days, I haven't had much chance to write! I really hope you enjoyed this chapter; hopefully things will start to get a bit more action packed soon. Thank you again so so so so so so much for all the reviews, favourites, and follows, I really appreciate every single one, so please keep doing what you're doing. And of course please feel free to give me any suggestions or advice on ways you think I could improve, I always love to hear from you all, so thanks again!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Rose's Point of View.**

As soon as her brother gave us permission to go to the party tonight, a very excited Viktoria Belikova dragged me up the stairs. 'Shower, now.' She said, as she threw a towel at me and pointed to the bathroom. She can be quite scary when she wants to be.

I thoroughly enjoyed the shower; I had already unpacked my things in the bathroom, so I used my favourite strawberry scented shampoo in my hair. I sang practically every song from Lady Gaga's new album while I was in the shower, 'John Wayne' being one of my favourites, for no reason in particular of course.

I stepped out of the shower when I deemed myself clean enough, and quickly moisturised my skin before wrapping my hair up in a towel and slipping one around my body.

I tentatively walked into Dimitri's room, and was shocked to see him lying on his bed, reading a western book. This was awkward.

'Hey Comrade, sorry I just need to get my hairbrush and some clothes.' He looked up from his book when I started talking and his eyes widened, taking in my appearance. I blushed, I actually blushed. Dimitri had seen me wearing a lot less than just a towel, and now I was blushing.

'See something you like?' I asked, putting on my best cocky expression, that's it, I'll cover up feeling uncomfortable around him with a cocky attitude and a snarky comment.

His eyes roamed up and down my body, he could set me on fire with that heated gaze. He put his book down and folded his arms across his chest. 'You know I see something I like.'

Damn, I wasn't expecting that response; my jaw must have hit the floor. He smirked at that. I was really seeing a new side to him here in Russia, he was so much more relaxed and easy-going, and I liked it.

'Dimka, is she out yet?!' We both turned our gazes to the door as we heard Vika shouting from her room down the hall.

Dimitri chuckled lightly. 'Vika told me to send you straight to her room once you were out of the shower, you'd better go, she didn't sound very patient.' There was a light smile on his face, making me smile in return.

I trotted over to the wardrobe on the other side of the room and pulled out some comfy clothes, I picked up my hair brush and makeup bag and made my way over to the door. I purposely swayed my hips a little more than was necessary when I knew Dimitri was watching me, I'm sure I heard him make a noise a lot like a growl as I left the room.

Viktoria's room looked like a bomb had hit it when I walked in. There were clothes and shoes all over the place. On her bed were two plates, both had sandwiches on them, of course they were the first thing that caught my eye as soon as I walked in. My stomach grumbled, it was after lunch time now.

Vika was sat in the middle of her bed. 'Go and get dressed then we'll have lunch then we can choose what you're going to wear!' I nodded my head and went back to the bathroom to get dressed. I had on jogging bottoms and a casual top, comfy things. I ran the brush through my tangled hair then returned to her room. She patted the spot next to her on the bed when I entered.

We ate our lunch together, Vika was so easy to be around, I never had to work to start a conversation, and we were actually really alike. She told me all about St. Basils Academy and her friends there. I enjoyed her company.

After we had eaten, Viktoria showed me what she had picked out to wear. It was a gorgeous dark green dress, it was quite tight fitting but wasn't too short, I knew she'd look great in it, I could tell the colour would suit her skin tone.

She had then laid out every other dress she owned; ready to pick one for me. They were all really nice but one stood out in particular. It was a deep burgundy colour; it looked tight fitting around the top but flowed out a bit around the waist like a skater dress. It also had cold shoulders which I really liked.

'Go and try it on!' Vika practically screamed when I told her that was my favourite. I skipped to the bathroom and tried the dress on; I walked back to Vika's room and did a twirl in front of her.

'Oh my God Roza, it looks incredible!' I stood in front of her full length mirror and scrutinised myself from every angle. It did look nice. It wasn't too tight around the legs so it felt quite comfortable too, but it did show off the curves of my chest which wasn't a bad thing.

I got dressed back into my normal boring clothes and we got to work on each other's hair and makeup. Vika curled my hair for me so we left it flowing down my back, she also did a dark smoky eye and I'd finish the look with burgundy lipstick to finish off the look. I styled Vika's hair into an intricate up do, it took a few tries to get it right, but the finished look looked great. She had light makeup on which finished the look.

Most of the day had passed when we were getting ready, we had just had a quick snack as dinner when she came back into her room carrying a glad bottle which held clear liquid, I couldn't read the label as it was in Russian, but by the smug look on her face I could tell it was alcohol. She got two cups and poured us both a glass, she mixed the drinks with what looked like lemonade, I'm glad she did that, I wasn't quite up for drinking it straight.

We were drinking and singing for about an hour before it was nearly time to leave. I put my shoes on and stood up, the world swirled around me slightly, but it wasn't too bad once I'd been standing for a moment.

We carefully made our way downstairs to find the whole family in the living room. Vika told me that Karolina had given her the vodka, and she gave us a knowing look when we entered the room.

I caught Dimitri's gaze when I entered the room and really wished I hadn't. He was gazing at me so intensely it made me want to run over there and throw myself at him and never let go.

I knew we'd been staring at each other for too long, I tore my eyes away from him.

'You both look beautiful.' Olena said kindly, to which everyone nodded.

'Thank you for letting us go, Olena.' I said as evenly as possible. It was damn hard to talk and stand still at the same time.

'Its fine Roza, just make sure you're both back by midnight. And please be careful.' I could see the concern clear in her eyes.

Vika took my hand in hers again and dragged me to the door. 'We'll be fine Mama, stop worrying, and love you all!' She shouted over her shoulder as she dragged me through the front door.

Vika had told me there weren't going to be any humans at this party, it was just Moroi and Dhampirs, Vika said she would know a few people there. I expected it would be a lot like the parties back home, I didn't know if that was a good or a bad thing.

Viktoria practically leapt down the steps at the front of the house, I was about to follow when I felt a strong hand grip my arm. I turned and saw Dimitri's heated eyes gazing down at me.

I stared up at him expectantly. 'Please be careful, and look after her.' He said, nodding towards Vika's general direction. 'I'll see you when you get home, Roza. You look breathtaking.' His hand tucked a strand of hair behind my ear and the electric current it sent through my body made me gasp. I glanced down at his lips and couldn't help but bite my lower lip. I heard a rumble emit from his chest.

'Hurry up Roza!' I heard Vika shout. I sighed and stepped out of Dimitri's reach. I gave him a small smile and gave him a look that told him not to worry about us, but I knew he would.

I walked as quickly as I could to catch up with Vika. I tried my hard not to stumble because I knew Dimitri would still be watching me, and he'd flip out if he knew we'd been drinking already. Vika's arm linked with mine once I caught up with her, and it was just a short walk to the house the party was being held at.

It wasn't hard to tell which house we were heading towards. Every light in the house was on, and I could hear the music blaring from here, as well as seeing the bustling silhouettes in the window.

I took one last deep breath of fresh air before we stepped into the house. It was full of Moroi and Dhampirs, I was pleased to see that there was more of the latter.

A tall Dhampir boy approached us soon after we arrived; he gave Vika a more than friendly hug which she gladly returned. He was introduced as Nikolai, she had told me about him earlier. He shook my hand when she introduced us to each other; he had a warm, friendly smile. He led us over to the kitchen and got us both a drink. I downed my quicker than I should have. Another was placed in my hand soon after.

We made our way to the living room then, which was being used as a dance floor of sorts; it was packed with dancing bodies. I couldn't hear a single word of English being spoken and I was glad I had the light buzz of alcohol flowing through my veins, I'd be a lot more on edge if I didn't.

I was dancing close by to Vika and Nikolai, perfectly happy and keeping them in the corner of my eye at all times. I let my body flow with the music.

It wasn't long before I felt a hand placed on my hip; I turned and was startled to see bottomless brown eyes gazing down at me. They were startlingly similar to Dimitri's. That was the only similarity this person had to him. But the Moroi gazing down at me was attractive in his own way; but it was those eyes that held my attention.

He obviously took my staring at him and not pulling away as a good sign. He leant down and brought his lips next to my ear so I could hear him over the music. He spoke in Russian. I had no idea what he said. I started laughing; I stood on my tiptoes and spoke into his ear. 'I have no idea what you just said!'

That made him smile, revealing white teeth and two sharp fangs. Moroi normally hid their fangs, but he clearly didn't care. 'I didn't think you looked like you were from around here, I said my name is Anton.'

'Mine's Rose.' Both hands were placed on my hips now. My hands had found their way to his shoulders. 'Nice name, its Roza in Russian.' As if I didn't know that already. I smiled and acted as if I didn't know.

We danced for a while, I didn't know the words to any of the songs, but it was easy to get carried away with the music. Anton stuck by me the whole time, dancing up against me in quite a provocative way.

I had no idea how long we'd been dancing for, but at some point he asked if I wanted to go and get a drink. I nodded; he took my hand in his and led me through the crowd.

He poured us both a drink when we were in the kitchen, there were less people in here, and I could actually hear myself speak when I thanked him. His hand brushed mine as he handed me my drink.

'Where are you from?' He asked, his accent was a lot stronger than any I had heard here yet.

'America, I'm here for Winter break, I'm staying with Viktoria.' He nodded in recognition; I guess he knew who she is.

'Maybe we could see more of each other then, while you are here?' He asked.

Definitely not. 'Sure, maybe.'

He took a step closer to me; one hand went around my waist and the other tucked a loose strand of hair behind my ear. Just like Dimitri did earlier. Shit. This party had actually taken my mind off him for a bit. Dimitri could never be around me like this in public. There was nothing wrong with taking my mind off things for a while was there?

I took a big gulp from my drink before putting it on the counter beside me; I wrapped one of my arms around his neck. No, there's nothing wrong with taking my mind off him for a bit. He brought his face inches from mine and pressed his lips to mine. I responded instantly and kissed him back.

He pushed me back until I was pressed up against the counter in the kitchen, I hopped up so I was sitting on it, and he stood between my legs, not breaking the kiss once.

Knowing that we were in the kitchen where people could see us suddenly dawned on me, I pulled back slightly. 'Want to go somewhere else?' He asked, almost reading my thoughts.

Did I really want to go somewhere else with him? I didn't not want to exactly. I tried not to think too hard before I nodded. I lead me upstairs and before I knew it we were in a bedroom. He laid me down on the bed and carried on kissing me.

Those bottomless eyes kept flashing in my mind. I didn't want this persons eyes, I wanted to be gazing into Dimitri's eyes.

He moved his kisses down to my neck, I felt the sharp point of his fangs brush against the skin of my neck and I froze. Anton of course noticed the change in me and lifted his head. 'Sorry, we don't have to do that; I wasn't going to make you or anything.' I sat up, he kissed me again. I glanced at the clock on the bedside table. We had 20 minutes to get home before midnight, shit. I pulled away from him. 'I really have to go; I have to be back by midnight.' I got up from the bed and practically ran out of the room, straightening out my dress as I went.

I headed down the stairs, searching for Vika the whole way, I didn't see her in the living room and so I headed to the kitchen, I saw Nikolai pouring a glass of water. 'Hey, have you seen Vika? We need to leave soon of her Mum will never forgive us.' He smiled at me and gave me an exasperated look. 'I was just getting this for her,' He said, gesturing down to the glass of water in his hand. 'She's being sick in the toilet, think she had too much to drink.'

I followed him to the bathroom were Vika had her head in the toilet; I rushed over to her and tied her hair up for her, gently rubbing her back. Nikolai gave her the water and she looked a bit better. I asked her if she was ok, to which she nodded and gave me a half-hearted smile.

I told her we had to leave and she got up with the help of Nikolai and I, she didn't protest once. Nikolai offered to walk us home, to which I politely declined. He gave Vika a lasting hug and kissed her cheek. I thanked him for looking after her; he said it was no problem. And we were soon stumbling down the dark streets of Baia. I was grateful he was there to look after Vika, but I should have been there for her.

How could I have been so stupid as to go off with that Moroi on my own? He seemed nice enough, he didn't exactly force me into anything, but it could have been so much worse.

We reached the Belikov's house with two minutes to spare. I helped Vika up to her room and helped her get changed into her pyjamas, I also got her a glass of water before leaving her, she thanked me but was soon fast asleep.

I walked into Dimitri's room as quietly as I could, but he was still awake when I entered the room, reading a book.

Those bottomless eyes held so many emotions. It was unbelievably stupid of me to compare that other guy to him. I could tell he was relieved that I was home. I couldn't take my eyes off him.

I went over to his bed and sat on the edge to take my shoes off. Dimitri sat up straighter as I approached; he moved his legs to give me room.

He lifted my chin and turned my face to face him. His chest was bare, my breath caught in my throat. His bottomless eyes were gazing into mine with such intensity; I knew I couldn't tell him anything that went on earlier tonight. It was better for the both of us if he didn't know.

 **There we have Chapter 7! Yay me for updating so soon again! This is one of the longest chapters I've written and I really enjoyed writing it, so I hope you enjoy reading it! I referred to Lady Gaga's new album, there really is a song called** _ **John Wayne**_ **on the album, and it's really good, would highly recommend it!**

 **Thanks again for all the follows, favourites and reviews, I appreciate every single one and love reading what you all have to say. I left the chapter at a bit of a loose end, because I'm planning the next one to take off exactly where I've left it but in Dimitri's point of view. Thanks again so much for reading, please let me know what you think!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Dimitri's Point of View.**

I had been waiting by my bedroom window when Roza and Vika walked up the path to the house. As every second ticked closer to midnight, I grew more anxious. It was stupid of me to let them go to that party, who knows what could have happened

I couldn't help the sigh of relief that exhaled from my body when I saw the pair walking up to the house at two minutes to midnight, Roza was practically carrying Vika, who looked a little worse for wear.

I jumped back into my bed and pretended to read, as if I hadn't just been staring out of the window for the past hour. Rose didn't walk into my room until about 10 minutes later, I guessed she was helping Vika to bed, which I was grateful for.

She stopped in the doorframe and just gazed at me when she laid eyes on me. I couldn't help but stare right back. She took my breath away.

She seemed to snap herself out of her thoughts, and she slowly walked over to the edge of my bed and perched herself on the end. I sat up straighter, allowing her a little extra space, and she started to take her shoes off. I could smell the alcohol on her from here.

I couldn't help myself; I lifted her chin and turned her face towards me. Her eyes were shining from the buzz of alcohol, she glanced down to my bare chest and I'm sure I heard her breath catch in her throat. My God the things this woman did to me.

'Are you okay, Roza?' I could have sworn I saw guilt flash before her eyes before she recovered herself and nodded.

'I'm fine, thank you. Sorry for keeping you up.' She gently pulled her face away from my light grip and stood up again. I would have missed her wobble slightly if I hadn't been paying attention.

'I'm just going to get ready for bed.' She declared, to which I nodded.

I glanced down at the crappy little bed on the floor, there is no way I could let her sleep on that, not tonight.

Roza emerged at my door once more and shut it behind her. Her slightly tousled hair had been brushed in an attempt to tame it, and I could tell she had taken her makeup off too. She didn't need it though; she was equally as beautiful without it. She had also changed into her pyjamas, how can she look so good even in pyjamas?

I really need to stop thinking about her like this. Nothing is meant to be going on between us, although both of us know that's not true.

She made her way over to the bed on the floor. 'No.' I practically growled. She gave me questioning look. 'I can't let you sleep on that again, not tonight. Please, Roza, come here.' She thought about it for some time, before sighing and walking over to the other side of my bed.

I was lying on top of the covers, but pulled back the edge on her side for her so she could get in. 'Goodnight, Roza.' I started to get up, I didn't want to assume she would be ok with me sleeping next to her, I would be perfectly happy sleeping on the other bed as long as she was comfortable. But her small hand gripped my wrist. 'Stay.' Was all she said, I didn't need to be told twice. I slowly pulled back the covers and slipped into the bed next to her, turning off the lamp as I did so, we were in complete darkness now.

For a while, I could hear nothing but the sound of our breathing. I assumed Rose was asleep by now, and so I was pleasantly surprised when I felt her small hand slip into mine, our fingers tangled together. Her hand was freezing. 'Are you cold?' I whispered.

I felt her shiver as I spoke the words. 'A little.' Was her only reply, her voice sounded small, strained. I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her body close to mine. I felt her body stop shivering at once; she let out a shaky breath. Her skin was so soft against mine. Her arms pressed against my chest, her legs brushing up against mine, I had to stop my mind from wondering.

'Is this okay?' I asked, my lips were just by her ear. I felt her shiver again, but she couldn't be cold anymore.

'Mmhm.' Was her mumbled reply, and I knew she was almost asleep already. I succumbed to the sleepiness soon after she did.

I woke to small beams of light flooding the room through the corners of the curtains. My limbs were completely tangled with Roza's. I gazed down at her face, she looked so peaceful when she was asleep, she was always so alert during the day, and she always had something to say. I don't think I'd ever seen her so at peace before.

A few strands of hair were covering her face, they moved up and down with ever breath she took. I reached out with my free arm and tucked them behind her ear. She made a contented sound.

I finally tore my gaze away from her and glanced at the clock on my bedside table. It was 9AM already. I don't think I'd ever slept this late in my life.

I couldn't stay here watching her sleep all day. I slowly untangled my limbs from hers, trying my best not to wake her up, but she was out like a light. I doubt even a bomb going off right outside would wake her up.

Once I was out of bed, I slipped on some running shorts and a long sleeved thermal top. I knew Rose wouldn't be running with me today, but that didn't mean I could slack off.

I passed Mama in the kitchen with Paul and Zoya on the way down, Karo and Sonja would already be at work by now, Yeva seemed to spend most of her time in her room recently. I briefly said good morning to them all before making my way out of the house and running around my home town.

I lost track of time, I just kept running and running. It must have been lunch time by the time I got back. Roza was in the kitchen, she had Paul bouncing up and down on her lap, the smile that graced her face as she gazed down at him was breathtaking, he seemed equally as in awe as she was.

She looked up at me as I entered, and her smile didn't falter. It looked like they had just finished eating lunch. I got a bottle of water and some of the lunch Mama had made a sat down at the table.

After some time Mama walked in with Zoya in her arms. 'Ready to go to the park, Paul?' She asked her grandson.

Paul leapt off Rose's lap and turned to face us both. 'Can't you two come?' He asked, giving Roza puppy-dog eyes.

'Sorry Paul, I'm not really dressed for the park and I'll take _so_ long to get ready. Me and your uncle could take you tomorrow though?' That seemed like a good enough answer from him, as he eagerly nodded and then sprinted out of the room, Mama quickly following.

Roza and I sat in tense silence for some time. I stood up and cleared the plates from the table, I hated sitting with nothing to do.

'I'm sorry about last night.' Rose suddenly said, the look on her face made it seem like she was just as surprised as I was by her outburst.

'Sorry for what?' I asked, I had no idea what she could be apologising for.

'I don't know, just keeping you awake and sleeping in your bed.' I wanted to tell her she could sleep in my bed every night if she wanted to, but I didn't know if that was a step too far.

'Its fine, Roza. Nothing to apologise for.' I replied.

Vika came through the kitchen door then, walking a lot like a zombie would. She plopped down on the chair next to Roza and held her head in her hands. I set a glass of water in front of her. 'Thanks Dimka.' She said.

'And thank you Roza, for taking care of me last night.' She looked slightly embarrassed; I hope she didn't make an idiot of herself at that party.

'It was nothing, really.' Roza tried brushing it off.

'So, did you get that guys number?' Vika asked casually. The question made Rose's whole body tense up, making me feel tense. What guy? She was with a guy?

'W-what guy?' Roza asked, she tried to look more relaxed, but I could see the fear in her eyes, and guilt? Why was she feeling guilty?

'Come on, Roza. I distinctly remember you having a heavy make-out session with that Moroi. What's his name again? I'm sure I recognised him. I'll give you credit, he did look hot. Did you go upstairs with him or did I imagine that? Things are still a bit blurry.' Vika was still talking away, but I had blocked her voice out now. Rose kissed someone last night?

Rose's gaze snapped up to mine, she looked like a deer caught in headlights. 'It was nothing, nothing happened.' Her voice shook.

'We're all friends here Roza, you can give us the gory details.' Vika exclaimed. My sister had absolutely no idea what she was talking about.

My fists clenched by my side. Why did I suddenly feel the need to punch something? How could Rose do this? I mean sure she's not technically my girlfriend, but I always thought of her as more than that. Did she not feel the same way anymore? We hadn't spoken about _us_ since the night in the cabin, what if she's moved on? Have I been too hostile towards her?

I told her I loved her in the cabin, and she had said it back. I haven't repeated those words since, but that didn't mean I didn't feel them.

All these emotions must have shown on my face because Rose couldn't take her eyes off me. I'm sure I could see tears starting to well up in her eyes. Rose never cried. Her eyes were practically bleeding guilt.

I had to hit something. The gym. I had to go to the gym. I quickly stood up straight. I tore my gaze away from Roza's face and glanced at Vika, she looked completely oblivious to what had just happened between Rose and I. 'I'm going to the gym.' I declared, my voice sounded monotone even to my own ears.

I ran through the house and out the door, despite having just ran through practically the whole of Baia, my legs didn't stop until I got to the gym. It was old and run down, but there were punching bags and practice dummies which would do just fine for what I needed.

One thing was for sure, I had to talk to Rose. Had she moved on already? Surely not. The night in the cabin had only happened just over a week ago, I took her virginity and we had finally declared our love for each other. Had she forgotten all of that already?

I tried to go over every aspect of our time since that night in my head. Nothing she did had indicated that she felt any different to how I did about her. We had sort of a mutual agreement that we would be as sensible as possible around each other until graduation, but had she taken that a step too far? She seemed happy here in Baia with me, with my family.

I took a swing at one of the punch bags hanging up in the gym and already felt a little better. One thing was for sure, I had to speak to Rose.

 **There we have Chapter 8! I really hope you enjoyed this chapter. And I just wanted to apologise for my last chapter, I realise that Rose was a bit out of character, but maybe we can blame it on the alcohol, and she was trying to get Dimitri off her mind! But we'll hear more about that next chapter, I really hope I haven't lost any of you though! Once again thank you so much to everyone who has favourited and followed the story, and especially to those of you who are kind enough to review, I absolutely love reading them! Thanks again so much for reading.**


	9. Chapter 9

**Rose's Point of View.**

'I'm going to the gym.' Was all he said before he practically stormed out of the room. Oh shit. I had really messed up.

What was I thinking? Of course Vika would know, I hadn't even had chance to worry about that yet.

I saw the pain and anger in Dimitri's eyes and it made me want to tear my heart out. I saw him clench his fists by his side and I knew he was trying his hardest to keep his emotions under control. His voice was monotone when he spoke, I'd never heard his voice sound so emotionless, even when I first met him and his guardian mask never slipped.

I sat there dumbfounded for just a moment. 'Jeez, he's grumpy today.' Vika said. She had absolutely no idea what just happened between the two of us.

It was my job to fix it. I'm the one who messed up, and I really did mess up, so I had to fix it, I had to show him it's him I want, him I need, him I love.

'I'm going to get dressed and go to the gym too I think. Your brother and I haven't sparred in a while.' I said, trying to sound as casual as possible. Vika was texting away on her phone now and just nodded in response.

I ran upstairs and straight into the bathroom, I had a quick shower and brushed my teeth, then threw on some workout clothes. I figured Dimitri would want some time to cool off on his own before I went and ruined his mood again anyway.

I wasn't entirely sure how to get to the gym, but I vaguely remembered where abouts it was from when I went running with Dimitri and he showed me around town. After running for about 15 minutes, the run-down gym finally came into view.

It felt good to run again, especially on my own, it gave me time to think. I ran through a few things I would say to Dimitri when I saw him. I'm going to have to be honest with him. I'm going to have to open up. He knows I'm reluctant to be honest about my feelings, and so I'm hoping by being honest and truthful about how I feel, he'll recognise that I really didn't mean what I did.

I cautiously walked into the gym. It was just one room with a changing room off to the side. Dimitri was at the punching bags, he was the only one here. Sweat was covering his body and face, and I could hear him breathing heavily from the other side of the room. I'd never seen him like this before, he was taking out all his energy on that punching bag, and I'd never seen him look so powerful before, so angry.

'Dimitri.' I called his name from my place in the door. He didn't even flinch, either he didn't hear me or he was ignoring me. I slowly approached him, but his back was towards me. I said his name a few more times until I was just a few feet behind him. He still hadn't stopped his attack on the punch bag. I could see now that his hands were coated in red. Blood. The sight made my heart pound somewhat faster.

I slowly outstretched my arm and placed it on his shoulder as gently as I could. The second my skin came into contact with his he turned around and shoved my hand off him so quick it made me stumble back a few steps.

The look on his face made me wish I hadn't come here at all. His eyes were gazing into my own. 'What do you want?' He asked, his voice came out in a low growl.

I took a deep breath, as if it could prepare me for the argument that is bound to come. 'I came to apologise, and to explain myself.'

His jaw clenched. Those bottomless eyes of his were a swirl of emotion, oh how I wanted to lose myself in those eyes. 'Go on then, explain, apologise. Whatever you need to do to make yourself feel better.'

'Believe me Dimitri, not a lot is going to make me feel better right now. I have to explain myself, I need to tell you what's going on with me, and I want you to do the same. Whatever this is, or was, we need to figure it out; I want to know what's going on. I can't stand not knowing what we are.' I said, gesturing between the two of us. My words were coming out rapidly now, I was breathing heavier.

I waited a moment for him to absorb my words, he nodded once he did, but didn't say anything, I assumed that was my cue to continue.

I took a deep breath, trying to calm myself as best as I could. 'I never meant for it to happen, Dimitri, you have to believe that. I never meant to hurt you. It was innocent to start with; he was just dancing next to me. Then I looked up to his eyes and they were so much like yours, those eyes are what made me hesitate. I know it's no excuse but I just needed to let go for a minute, I had to feel something. I wanted to embrace the fact that I could kiss this guy in public and not worry about being seen.'

'I told you I loved you Roza, and you told me you loved me, is this what you do when you love someone? You go kissing some random guy?' I expected him to shout, but he didn't. His voice was level, even.

'Do you love me, Dimitri? Because you sure as shit haven't shown it. I get the whole _'keep a professional distance'_ thing, I really do understand that. I get we have to hold off until graduation, if you still even want me then. But anything, any sign that you haven't moved on, haven't forgotten would have kept me going.' I didn't want to sound petty, but I had to know.

'Do you really think I could have forgotten you so easily? How naive can you get, Rose?' His fists clenched by his side once more; he was still fighting for control.

'I was trying to show you I've changed by coming here. I wanted you to see that I could have a mature conversation about a mature situation with you Dimitri. I may be many things, but I am _not_ naive.' My voice was becoming louder and more shrill the more wound up I became. I hated the age gap between us and the power it gave him over me.

'You showed me exactly how naive you are by going to some party and kissing the first guy you came across, just because I've been _forced_ to stay away from you to save my reputation and your future career.' He was shouting too now. I knew we had been ordered to stay away from each other. I let my own anxieties and self consciousness take over.

'I'm so sorry Dimitri. I just assumed you didn't want me anymore; I had to get my mind off this whole fucked up situation. I'm sorry. I promise you it will never happen again. I didn't want him, I only ever wanted you.' We were standing closer to each other now. My eyes were stinging with unshed tears. My hand was on his heaving chest now; I must have put it there at some point during my rant.

'Do you really think so lowly of me, Rose? Did you think I'd just move on and forget about you after a couple of weeks? You can't run away from every situation in your life as soon as a problem comes up.' He was still shouting, I took a step back, my hand falling from his chest.

There was still anger in his eyes, but it wasn't controlling him anymore. He was hiding a lot of his emotions from me as well; I didn't blame him for that. Would he ever forgive me? Would I ever forgive myself?

'I didn't know what to think, Dimitri! I've told you I'm sorry, if I could go back in time and not go to that stupid party, then I would! I love you, Dimitri, It's always been you.' I whispered the last part. I'm not sure he would have heard if he hadn't been standing so close.

'I love you too Roza, more than I ever thought I could love somebody. That's why this hurts so much. I just need some time to think.' I was gazing up into his eyes. I couldn't stop the lone tear that escaped the corner of my eye. He lifted his hand to my face and gently brushed away the tear with his thumb. 'I promise we'll talk more about this later.' He said gently, then I felt his touch leave my skin and I watched him walk out of the door.

I didn't blame him for needing time to think. I stood in the middle of the gym for some time, trying to process my thoughts into some kind of rational order. I suppose I should go back to the Belikov's house soon. I glanced at my watch, it'll be getting dark soon, the days were getting shorter now winter is in full swing.

I made my way outside; I didn't run home, I enjoyed the leisurely pace of walking.

One thing I didn't like about Baia, is that every street looked the same, most of the houses looked pretty similar too.

Before I knew it I was completely and utterly lost. Shit. I carried on walking, trying to delay the feeling of panic that was slowly rising in my chest.

I looked around once more; there were houses on either side of the road, as well as streetlights. That's a good sign; at least it's a well lit area. I was in a strange country where I didn't speak a word of the language, nor did I have my phone, I really do get myself into some stupid situations.

I was standing on the corner of the street when I heard men's voices shouting from one side of the street. One glance in their direction told me there were several of them, drunk Moroi men. I started walking in the other direction as briskly as I could. Only to walk into three more of the men, they had me surrounded.

'Hey, girly. You lost or something?' One of them asked, grinning wide, showing off his sharp fangs. I cringed at the sight.

'No, I'm fine, thanks.' I said bluntly, pushing my way past a few of them only for them to follow. Okay don't panic Rose you're a badass novice-practically guardian, you can take on a couple of drunk weak-ass Moroi.

'Hey now hold up, what's the rush? We're headed to a party if you want to join us.' Another one of them spoke; he was right next to me now. A party with these strangers was the last place I wanted to be.

'No, I'll be on my way now.' I said more firmly this time. There was one of them on either side of me now, but I kept walking.

I felt one of them slip their arms around my waist and I immediately tensed up and backed away, which left me right in the grip of the other one. His fingers were digging in tight to my upper arms. I clenched my fists and threw my elbow back into the nose of the sick bastard holding onto me. That loosened his grip enough for me to twist my way out. Only for another two to grab me. Jesus Christ how many were there?

One was holding tightly onto my arms while the other stood behind me with his arm around my neck, almost like a choke hold, I was struggling to breathe now. I kicked and punched as much as I could, but they just laughed and kept taunting me.

I had taken a few down by now, but the others were still persisting with whatever it is they wanted from me.

I threw my head back and hit the one behind me, efficiently breaking his nose. Stars danced at the edges of my vision as I took a few deep breaths, trying to get air into my starving lungs. It was getting darker now and harder to see by the second.

Car headlights flashed towards us and stayed facing us. That made the Moroi men turn and look. I couldn't see who was getting out of the car, but I heard the doors slam. Whoever it was made the Moroi men drop me and run. I landed hard on my knees. I stood up quickly, reading to take on whoever else was approaching me now.

I could just about make out some of the details about the car, it looked expensive, far too flashy to be from around here.

The man who appeared in front of me was flanked by two Guardians, their presence made me feel better already.

The man was a Moroi, a very wealthy one by the looks of things. He was dressed in a suit unlike one I'd seen before, from what I could see he had a red scarf thing around his neck and was tanned. He had long hair and dark brown eyes. Something about him was familiar to me. Something about him made me take his outstretched hand when he offered it and helped me up.

'It's good to see you Rosemarie, now let's get you back to the Belikov's house; they'll be awfully worried about you.' He spoke with an air of confidence around him; he also had an accent that I couldn't quite place.

'Do I know you?' I stupidly asked, of course I don't know him. How on earth would I know a man who drives a car like that and wears a suit like that?

'No, I don't suppose you do, but I know you. The Belikovs live just a few streets away, the family are familiar with me, and I promise you can trust me.' Something about him made me trust him. Although I know that not all guardians are loyal, knowing that there were Dhampir's with me also made me feel somewhat more secure.

I took a chance, which was probably stupid of me considering what had just happened moments ago. But I didn't really see how I could get home without this strange man. I followed him over to his expensive looking car, and got in when he held the door open for me.

 **So there we have Chapter 9! At the beginning of this story I kind of thought that Rose is always the one getting hurt, she's always the victim when it comes to her love interests. I never really set out for her to do what she did to Dimitri, nor did I set out for her to become sort of the bad guy in this situation and I'm sorry if that's not something you're too keen on, although I do quite like stories where Rose is the victim, it just kind of happened now that Dimitri is the victim and Rose is the one that messed up, but I guess it's also quite nice to read something a bit different to the typical 'Rose gets her heart broken then runs away' type story, although I love all of those too!**

 **So please please please tell me what you think, as I love to hear from you all. And thank you all so much for reviewing, I can't believe I've reached over 100 reviews already! Thanks again for all your support, I really hope you enjoyed the chapter!**


	10. Chapter 10

**Dimitri's Point of View.**

I shouldn't have walked out on Roza like that. I knew what I said was harsh; I shouldn't have called her naive, when I knew she was anything but. I had to tell her how I felt, and I knew she had to tell me what she was feeling too, but I never wanted us to argue like that. The thought of her with some random boy made me feel sick with rage and jealousy.

She actually looked afraid of me in the gym; she'd never looked at me like that before. In all honesty I didn't blame her for trying to take her mind of the situation, whatever it is. I take my mind off it too, I read and I go running, I would never go kissing some random woman though. I knew she regretted it; I just wanted to forget it ever happened.

I kept checking behind me on my way home to see if Roza had followed me, but there was no sign of her. Guess she wanted to get rid of some of her anger in the gym too.

I got home and went straight to the bathroom cabinet where we kept medical supplies. I cleaned and disinfected my hands but didn't bandage them, they'd heal better on their own, the bleeding had stopped by now anyway.

Mama was in the living room with my niece and nephew when I emerged from the bathroom, she gave me a questioning look and glanced down at my hands with concern shown clearly in her eyes, I glanced at Paul and just shook my head at her, she looked worried still but didn't pry any further.

Paul shot up and ran towards me when he saw me, tugging on the sleeve of my shirt. 'Uncle Dimka, where is Roza? I want to show her the Lego statue I made!' He said eagerly. I smiled at him but couldn't help the feeling of worry that worked its way into the pit of my stomach. I glanced up at Mama again.

'Isn't she back yet? I thought she would have left the gym soon after me.' I said while glancing out the window facing the street. It was starting to get dark.

'No I haven't seen her since this morning; Vika said you both rushed off to the gym. Why didn't she come back with you, Dimka?' She asked.

'We had a bit of a disagreement, it doesn't matter though.' I tried brushing off her concern, she would only worry.

I spent some time playing with Paul and Zoya while Mama started making dinner, trying my best to diffuse the panic building in my chest. Vika came down from her room at one point and of course asked where Roza was, which only made me worry more.

When Sonja and Karolina walked through the door, part of me was hoping they would have found Roza on their way home from work, but they too asked where she was when they saw she wasn't with me or Vika. I started pacing.

'How long has it been since you left the gym?' Vika asked as we all tried to come up with a reasonably solution as to where she could be. I glanced at the clock for the thousandth time.

'Three hours and twelve minutes.' I glanced out the window once more; it was pitch black outside now. 'That's it. I'm going to look for her. She doesn't know her way around Baia, and its pitch black, Strigoi could be out there, she doesn't have a stake.' Why hadn't I given her a stake yet? I had one with me specifically for her, but I was going to wait until her birthday to give it to her, I wanted it to be special.

I slipped on my shoes and leather duster and threw open the front door. I couldn't stand waiting around any longer.

I had barely taken a step out of the front door when I stopped dead in my tracks.

A car pulled up outside our house, a car that didn't belong around the little quiet town of Baia. A car that could only mean bad news. It stood out like a sore thumb.

Two finely dressed Dhampir Guardians stepped out of the car first; one opened one of the back doors. A man stepped out, dressed in a fine suit with dark hair, with his typical scarf around his neck that you simply couldn't miss.

Ibrahim Mazur is not someone you wanted to see getting out of his flashy car in front of your house. At least that's what I thought until I saw him open the other back door. Also known as Zmey, Mr. Mazur is not someone you want to mess with. No one knows exactly what type of business he's into, but everyone knows it's illegal.

When Roza stepped out of the car, my shock and surprise tripled. What was she doing with Abe Mazur?

He held his arm out for her, but she didn't even glance at it, she stumbled out of the car all by herself.

Had she been in a fight? I could tell from where I was standing that her shirt was ripped. And as she slowly made her way closer I saw more and more signs that she'd gotten in some sort of trouble. Had Abe done this to her? I don't care how powerful or dangerous he is, I'll kill him if he laid a hand on her.

She had bruises and red marks all up her arms, that had nothing compared to the redness and bruising around her neck, that added to the dazed look in her eyes all set off alarm bells in my head.

Before I could stop myself I sprinted down the steps and pulled Roza away from the Moroi and his guardians. I gently tugged her behind my body, shielding her from them as best as I could.

'What the hell did you do to her?' The two guardians that flanked Zmey both stood up a little straighter and didn't take their eyes off me, clearly waiting to see if I posed a threat to their well-paying boss.

'Now, now Mr. Belikov. That's no way to greet an old friend. Why don't you invite me in and I'll tell you all about how I found Rosemarie.' He said glancing to the still open door. Mama stood in the doorway now and made her way down the steps. She cautiously glanced in Abe's direction before she focussed all of her attention on Roza, who was looking more and more dazed the minute.

My mother gently put her hand on Roza's cheek and forehead; she also moved her hair out of the way of her neck, revealing even more red marks.

'Olena?' Rose asked, her voice was barely a whisper.

Mama wrapped her arms around Roza's small frame. 'Yes honey I'm here, you're home now.'

Roza's arms went around my mother and I saw her eyes close. Then her whole body went limp. Mama stumbled at the sudden change in her body posture, but managed to hold Roza up for a split second before I was there to catch her.

I swiftly picked Roza up into my arms, and her head fell backwards, she was unconscious.

Momentarily forgetting about Zmey and his guardians, I sprinted up the steps into the house and gently put Roza on the sofa, resting her head on a cushion.

Once she was safely on the sofa, Mama gently pushed me aside and knelt down next to Rose. The whole family was crowded into our living room now, as well as Zmey and his guardians, who seemed to put everyone on edge. Even Babushka was glancing worriedly at Roza's limp frame. She was standing closest to Mr. Mazur, she didn't fear anyone after all.

Remembering that he was still here, I turned to face him. 'What the hell happened to her?!'

Despite my raised voice, Abe remained as nonchalant as ever. 'I was just driving around town when we saw young Rosemarie here having a spot of bother with some drunken Moroi men. There were several of them, surrounding her. She looked like she was slowly being overpowered and so my men and I decided it was best if we stepped in. The drunken bastards ran away with their tails between their legs as soon as they recognised me, of course, who wouldn't?' He told the story casually, as if he had no interest in what he was talking about, the way his eyes flickered down to Rose told me otherwise.

'And she just got in the car willingly with you?' I found that hard to believe.

'I suppose she realised she didn't have much choice, she looked lost and afraid, can you blame her? Besides, I told her that I was familiar with your family, Dimitri, and that I told her I knew where you lived, that seemed to be enough for her to trust me.' Something wasn't adding up.

'How did you know that she was staying with us?' There's no way he could have known that, we haven't seen Zmey in years.

'Oh you know me, Dimitri. Nothing stays secret from me for long.' He was right about that. Zmey knew everything about everyone, and always managed to find a way to used it to his advantage.

'Dimka.' My Mother got my attention; I turned back around to face Rose. Mama's hand was resting underneath Roza's head, when she pulled it away; it came back slightly red with blood. 'That will explain her fainting, as well as the shock perhaps.' I nodded. Mama now had a damp cloth resting on the back of Roza's head. It was times like this I was most grateful that Mama used to be a nurse.

Karo had since taken the children upstairs and out of the way. Yeva huffed and said _'You are all being dramatic, she will be fine, she is strong.'_ Before wondering off upstairs, clearly fed up of all the drama.

Having Abe Mazur in my house was making me ten times more on edge. I was pacing up and down the room while Mama examined the rest of Roza's injuries. Luckily she didn't have any broken bones, just scratches and bruises on her arms and neck. Thankfully, she hadn't been bitten or fed from either.

Roza had been unconscious for around 15 minutes now, and I was growing more anxious by the second. I replayed our fight over and over again in my head, why had I said those things to her? Sure, I had meant them at the time, but none of them meant anything to me when I knew how much I loved her.

'Mitri... D-Dimitri...' I heard a mumble. My gaze snapped down to Roza's face as I saw her eyes flickering, like she was trying to lift her eyelids but they were too heavy for her, maybe they were.

I knelt down beside her and gently took her hand into my own. I tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear. 'Shh, I'm here Roza. It's going to be okay.' She seemed to calm down a bit for a moment then her eyes opened. I had missed those beautiful brown eyes.

'Hi.' She said softly. I couldn't help but chuckle at her ridiculous greeting considering what she'd just been through. 'Hello.' I replied, if only to humour her.

She tried sitting up but Mama gently pushed her back down, telling her she should stay lying down.

I watched as Roza's eyes surveyed the room until they landed on Mazur, where they stopped on him. She cleared her throat before speaking directly to him, much to my surprise. 'Thank you, for bringing me back here, whoever the hell you are.' I was glad to see she was back to her normal self, although her voice was hoarse.

Mama gasped at the way she spoke to the well-known and incredibly feared Abe Mazur, but he only laughed. 'You're welcome, Rosemarie.' He said, with an almost knowing smile on his face.

'How do you know my name, Old Man?' She said with her eyebrows raised. Mama dropped her head into her hands at the way Rose was talking to him, Vika and Sonja looked equally as embarrassed, my eyebrows just shot up in surprise, of course she had no idea who he is, why would she?

'You and I go way back, Little Girl. But that's a story for another day. Now that I know you are safe and well in the Belikov's trusting hands, I shall bid you goodnight. But I promise we'll be seeing more of each other.' He said, ever mysteriously. Before anyone could utter another word, he was out of the door.

'Okay, who the _hell_ was that?' She asked as soon as he was out the door.

'Roza, that was Abe Mazur. He's very well known around here for his... business, I suppose you could call it. No one really knows what he does, but we know it's illegal. And for him to know who you are is an incredibly strange and somewhat worrying thing.' I said as a way of explanation. 'Now, are you okay? What happened?' My hand was still clutching hers, but she didn't seem to mind.

She took a deep breath before she slowly started talking. 'I was walking back from the gym, I must have been lost. When these drunken Moroi men crowded me, they wouldn't let me go. I fought a few of them off but there was way too many. Who knows what would have happened if the rich guy hadn't turned up. And I guess, by the look on your faces, that they did quite a bit of damage?' She said, her usual flare had returned to her tone of voice by the end of her explanation, I guess that meant she was feeling a bit better, or at least wanted us to think that she was.

Mama stepped in then to explain her injuries. 'You have a wound on your head which I have cleaned up, Roza. As well as severely bruised arms and neck.' Pain and fear flashed in Roza's eyes as her hand gently touched the increasingly colourful flesh of her neck; she sucked in a harsh breath as her fingers made contact with the skin. I hated seeing her in pain.

After about half an hour, I helped Roza up into a sitting position. After her stomach rumbled for the third time, Mama brought her a tray of food through to her place on the sofa, which she eagerly ate; I ate my dinner beside her so she wasn't on her own. I found it fascinating watching her eat, how could such a petite woman eat so much, and do it so beautifully?

After some time she rested her head on my shoulder and closed her eyes with a sigh. 'Should I help you up to bed, Roza?' Her only response was a slight nod. Roza took my Mama's hand into her own when she sat up. 'Thank you Olena, for helping me, it was very kind of you.' Mama clearly didn't think holding her hand was enough, and so pulled Roza into a gentle hug. The scene brought a smile to my face, I couldn't be happier that they get on well; Mama saw Roza was part of the family before she even met her.

Once Roza had said goodnight to everyone else, I lifted her into my arms as gently as I could, and carried her up the stairs. When we reached my bedroom, I gently placed her on the bed. I placed her pyjamas onto her lap, and made my way to the door, to give her some privacy. 'Dimitri. Will you help me?' She was really going to test my control.

I turned to face her. 'I'm not sure that's the best idea Roza...' I said, as much as I wanted to, I feared I wouldn't be able to control myself.

'Please, it hurts. You know I wouldn't ask unless it was necessary.' She had a point. I nodded and made my way over to her.

I sat beside her and cleared my throat, feeling awkward. She placed her hands at the top of her waist band and tugged as well as she could, but her leggings wouldn't come down while she was sitting down. 'You're going to have to stand up Roza, I'll help.' She nodded as I took her hands into my own and stood up in front of her. I ever so slowly helped her as she stood up, allowing her to lean on me. 'You're going to have to take them off for me, my neck hurts when I move too much, I'm sorry, Dimitri.' I nodded once more and gritted my teeth before kneeling down in front of her. I looked into her eyes, silently asking for permission. She nodded.

I dipped my fingers into the waistband of her leggings and gently pulled them down. I felt Rose shiver. Watching the material glide down her smooth tanned legs was like torture. She slowly stepped out of them and into her pyjama shorts. I helped her sit back down onto the bed.

She ever so slowly raised her arms above her head. 'Okay, pull my top up now.' I swallowed the lump in my throat and gritted my teeth once more. I took the fabric of her top into my hands and gently pulled it upwards. My hands brushed against the soft skin of her waist and I felt a shiver run through her body. I carefully pulled the top over her head, being extra careful around her arms and neck. Thank God she was wearing a bra, I don't know what I'd do if she wasn't. She kept her arms up as I put her pyjama top over her head. She slowly dropped her arms to her side once more. Thank God that was over. I was still having a hard time keeping my thoughts under control.

I helped her under the covers and couldn't help but brush my hand against her cheek once she was tucked up into bed. 'I'm so sorry about what happened in the gym, Dimitri. It was stupid of me, I know you can't forgive me, but I hope we can move on. I can't stand you being mad at me.' She said quietly while looking into my eyes and leaning into my touch.

I cleared my throat before speaking. 'I'm sorry too Roza, I shouldn't have said what I did. You have no idea how worried I was about you. I couldn't have lived with myself if something were to happen to you.' She gave me an apologetic smile.

I was about to get up and make my way over to the bed on the floor, when she placed her hand on my shoulder, pulling me closer. She slipped her hand behind my neck and I felt her soft fingers tangle with the ends of my hair, it sent a shiver down my back. She had pulled me closer to her so my hands were on either side of her face. 'Stay with me.'

She was looking at my lips. Did she want me to kiss her? Her eyes flickered up to mine once more and they were so full of emotion, I couldn't stop myself. I brought my face just inches apart from hers, giving her the chance to pull away if she wanted. But she did the opposite; she slowly lifted her face and brought her lips to mine.

It was like I'd been suffocating the whole time, and I could finally breathe again. The kiss was tender and slow, I didn't move too fast, I didn't want to hurt her. I trailed one hand up her body until it tangled in the ends of her silky soft hair.

Both her hands were gently caressing my face and tangled in my hair. Her tongue brushed against mine and I had to suppress a groan.

Words could never describe how much I missed her, how addictive she was. I felt her legs wrap around my hips and I deepened the kiss. One of my hands dipped under her top and massaged the soft skin of her stomach; she exhaled deeply, almost a moan.

I was trying my hardest to keep my hips from touching hers, I knew I'd get carried away if we touched there, we couldn't go that far tonight, not while she was in so much pain.

She trailed her small hands down my chest and pushed them up my shirt, she rested them on my stomach, the feeling made the muscles tense beneath her small hands.

I reluctantly pulled my lips away from hers. We were both breathing heavily; her eyes were so dark with emotion as she gazed up at me.

I gave her one last lingering kiss. 'Sleep, Roza. You must be exhausted.' She nodded and I slowly climbed off her. I stood up but stopped when her hand reached out for my own once more.

'Stay with me. I'll sleep better with you next to me, please.' Truth is, I knew _I'd_ sleep a lot better with her next to me. But I still had to consider it for just a moment. I finally nodded and walked round the other side of the bed. I pulled my shirt off and slipped into the bed beside her. She shuffled backwards- towards me- and I pulled her into my arms where she settled comfortably. I heard her contented sigh.

I tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and kissed her just behind her ear, I felt the shiver run down her body and my arms instinctively tightened around her before I leant back and turned off the lamp.

I matched my breathing to hers and finally closed my eyes when I felt her drift off to sleep.

 **There we have Chapter 10! A longer chapter this time, so I really hope you like it! Once again please let me know what you think, I love reading each and every one of your reviews; they literally brighten up my day as sad as it sounds! Thanks again to everyone who has followed, favourited and reviewed, I can't believe how many reviews this story has already! Thanks again so much for your support, I hope you enjoyed!**


	11. Chapter 11

**Rose's Point of View.**

Falling asleep in Dimitri's arms made me feel so safe. I knew I was pushing my luck when I asked him to sleep next to me; I was honestly surprised he was so willing after what happened the night before. I was quite shaken after my encounter with those Moroi men, and then that man- Abe Mazur- turning up and being all mysterious as if he knew me. I barely remember how I got home.

I was somewhat disappointed to find the bed cold and empty beside me when I woke up, that was selfish of me, and it was selfish of me to ask him to sleep next to me in the first place.

I slipped into Lissa's head as soon as I woke up, as I did every morning, just to check on her. She'd been having a wonderful time with Christian and Tasha, I was happy for her. We'd texted a few times back and forth since I'd arrived in Russia, and I promised to call her soon to have a proper catch up.

After returning back to my own head, I glanced at the clock on Dimitri's bed side table. No wonder he wasn't in bed when I woke up, it was lunchtime already. I had slept for over 14 hours, that's got to be a new record.

My hand instinctively went to the back of my head were there was a dull throbbing, I felt a small scab beneath the hairline, but the pain there was nothing compared to that of my neck. It felt like I had been punched in the throat over and over again, I coughed and it only made the pain that much worse.

I slowly sat up in bed and made my way over to the bathroom, I still felt a bit unsteady on my feet so I walked slowly and put my hand on the walls on either side of me to steady myself.

I took a long shower, enjoying the soothing heat of the water beating down on my aching muscles. While I was showering and washing my hair, my mind – as it so often does- wondered to Dimitri. How was I meant to act around him after our kiss last night? Did it mean anything or was it simply because he was worried about me and because I was injured? I decided I would act friendly and pleasant towards him while we were around his family, and then I'd talk to him about my thoughts when we were alone.

After I had rinsed the shampoo and conditioner out of my wild hair, I stepped out of the shower and dried myself down, before dressing in sweat pants and a plain black top. I dried my hair slightly with the towel and then left it flowing down my back to dry on its own.

After slipping on my favourite pair of slippers, I cautiously headed downstairs and into the kitchen, which was filled with every member of the Belikov family, who all looked up when I entered the room.

I plastered the best smile I could onto my face, but I felt it falter and my eyes dropped to the floor when no one said anything and they all carried on gazing at me, there was nothing scrutinising or accusing about their gazes, just curiosity.

Olena was the first to break the silence, she approached me and hugged me tight to her body, I welcomed the motherly contact more than I should have done. She pulled out the one empty chair around the table for me and gestured that I should sit. I sat down and breathed a sigh of relief when the weight was taken off my feet.

'How are you feeling, Roza?' Vika asked cautiously, which was surprising for her, as she's always so abrupt and outspoken. I must have really freaked them out last night, which just made me feel even guiltier.

I cleared my throat and winced at the pain. 'I'm okay, a bit sore.' My voice came out hoarse and quieter than I expected.

Olena placed a steaming cup of what looked like tea in front of me. 'Here, this should help the sore throat.' I thanked her and took a small sip; the lemon tasting liquid was surprisingly soothing as I felt it trickle down my throat.

'We're going to the mall today Roza, did you need anything bringing back?' Karolina kindly asked after explaining that they had Christmas shopping to do, I couldn't believe how quickly Christmas was approaching, my Birthday approaching with it.

I politely declined the offer, I knew I'd have to go shopping at some point before Christmas, luckily I had already sorted presents out for everyone back home, we didn't get to go shopping much and so I had bought all their presents back in September. I still had to buy for Dimitri and his family though.

It seemed as though the family had just finished eating their lunch, Olena cut me a slice of bread, or what looked like bread, but much darker. She explained that it was called black bread, and it is Dimitri's favourite, that made me all the more eager to try it. After buttering the slice, I took a bite and couldn't help the appreciative sound that came from my mouth as I swallowed the first bite. 'Olena this is incredible! How can bread taste so good?'

That made the whole family laugh. 'Thank you Roza. Dimitri makes it well too; I taught him when he was just a boy.' I looked at Dimitri then for the first time since I sat down, he was smiling too, and I loved seeing him smile. He used to rarely smile when we first met, I used to make it goal every day to see him smile back at the Academy, but now I was getting used to seeing that breath taking smile more often.

After I had eaten another two pieces of black bread, Karolina, Sonja, Vika and the kids all said goodbye as they left to go shopping. Yeva went up to her room and Olena said she had jobs to do upstairs. Efficiently leaving Dimitri and I alone in the kitchen.

The room felt bigger when it wasn't crammed with fast-talking Russian women, suddenly it was too big, I felt exposed sitting next to Dimitri as I felt him staring at me.

I avoided his gaze for as long as I could before finally meeting his eyes, they were swirling with emotions.

His hand slowly reached across the table until his fingers tangled with my own. The feeling of his skin against mine sent a familiar jolt of electricity through my bones.

'Are you really okay, Roza?' He asked, his voice was barely a whisper and thick with emotion.

I started nodding before he even finished the sentence. 'I'm fine, really. I'm sorry about last night, about making you sleep next to me, and for kissing you. I shouldn't have.' My voice was still rough, but had gained some of its volume and didn't hurt to speak as badly as it did before after drinking the cup of tea Olena had made me.

A frown brought his eyebrows together. 'Why are you apologising for that?' He asked simply, as if it was an easy question to answer.

'I don't know, I didn't know if you'd want to...' I trailed off, after everything we'd been through, I still felt awkward talking to him about these things.

'Why would you ever think I wouldn't want to kiss you, Roza? There's not a single moment in any day that I don't want to kiss you.' He stated as if it he was commenting on something as simple as the weather.

How do I talk about this without pushing him away from me? 'After what I did, I didn't think you would want to.' I said, trying to keep my voice even.

'I thought we'd been through this Roza. The thought of you kissing another man drives me crazy, I know you're impulsive and you needed to feel free again, like your old self. But you're not the same person you used to be, you've grown into this strong woman, and I know that you would never do anything like that again, I can see it in your eyes, I've moved past it Roza, you need to as well.' Both his hands were holding on to mine, as if it could keep me from pulling away from him. It was incredible how well this man knew me, sometimes I thought he knew me better than I knew myself.

I needed him to know that he could trust me. I placed my hands on either side of his face, gently rubbing my thumb against the stubble of his cheek. 'I promise you, I never intent to kiss another man again. Except you.'

The smile that lit up his face completely took my breath away. His thumb traced my lower lip until he finally brought his lips to mine. His fingers tangled into my hair and he used his foot to bring my chair closer to his, efficiently pulling us closer together.

I draped my arms around his neck as he deepened the kiss; his arm wrapped around my waist and pulled me even closer to him, so I was practically straddling him. His tongue brushed mine and I was completely lost in him.

His hand was gripping my hip and I felt his fingers dig into the skin there, making my hips jerk into his on their own accord. ' _Roza'_ He growled, almost like a warning. I smiled against his lips.

'Dimitri, Mark and Oksana... Oh my.' The sound of Olena Belikova's voice coming from just outside the door, as well as her fast approaching footsteps broke us out of our trance, and I practically scrambled off of Dimitri's lap, until I was back in my chair, incredibly flustered. By the look on her face, she must have seen everything.

'I am so sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt.' She had a knowing smile on her face and her eyes seemed to be alight with joy.

'It's no problem Mama, what were you going to say?' Dimitri prompted, he was trying to hide the smile on his face, but I could see it in his eyes.

'Oh of course, as I was saying, Mark and Oksana are on their way over. I mentioned you were home and they said they'd love to see you. They'll be here in about 10 minutes.' She said, the smile still gracing her face as her gaze lingered on the two of us once more, Dimitri's hand was still holding mine, he hadn't taken it away. She soon hurried out of the room.

The air in the room felt thick, Dimitri's eyes were on me again, I broke the silence. 'Who are Mark and Oksana? I asked curiously.

'They are old family friends of ours, I was hoping you'd have chance to meet them while you were here, I think you'll like them.' He said with a knowing smile. He explained that they were a Moroi and Dhampir who are married, that had me curious and pleasantly surprised. It was so uncommon for a Moroi and Dhampir to have a relationship, let alone be married, a lot of people didn't like the idea, just like a lot of narrow-minded people won't like the idea of me and Dimitri being together, if that's even what we are.

Before I knew it there was a knock on the door and a lot of Russian conversation flowing through the house from the front door. Dimitri saw the frown on my forehead and smiled before kissing me on the forehead. He took my hand and helped me up; we walked over to the front door to find Olena speaking with a kind-looking woman and a greying man, his arm wrapped protectively around her.

They looked up when Dimitri and I reached them; they both embraced him with open arms. Dimitri introduced us, Mark approached me first and kindly shook my hand, and he had a kind face but rough, calloused hands that could only be that of a guardian. I couldn't help but notice Oksana studying me intently as I turned to face her, Mark cleared his throat which brought her out of her trance. She smiled politely and took my hand, but the frown still remained on her face.

There was something familiar about the way they communicated, as Dimitri and Olena were talking to the pair, I noticed them finishing each other's sentences, almost as if they knew what each other was thinking.

The thought dawned on me, and Oksana stared straight at me with a small smile on her face. 'You're bonded.' I said simply. All eyes in the room centred on me.

Dimitri was about to say something but Oksana got there first. 'As are you, but where is your bond mate, Rose?' Even her voice was wise, trustworthy. Always drawing people in, much like the other spirit users I know.

'She's back home, in America. This is the first time I've been so far away from her.' I confessed. I didn't know why I was telling them this when I had only just met them, but I somehow knew that they could be trusted, after all, they must know exactly what I was going through.

'I can see that is tough for you, you miss her. Your aura is unlike anything I've ever seen before.' Mark's eyes lost focus after his wife finished speaking, and I knew he was inside her head, seeing through her eyes, he would be able to see my aura through her eyes. After only a second his eyes focussed on me again. 'Oh my.' Was all he said.

'Is it really that bad?' I said, I made my voice as light as possible, but in reality, their observations scared the shit out of me.

'It is incredibly dark, Roza, black even. I can see that you take the darkness from your bond mate an awful lot, perhaps more than you even realise. We understand that it was be hard to control, but you must learn to control it, and only take it in moderation, it can cause more harm than you know.' I tried my hardest to keep the worry off my face.

'Are you injured, Rose?' Oksana asked, her voice was friendly and caring, she gestured to my neck and the sore flesh of my arms which I self consciously tried to cover up with my hands.

'Roza was attacked last night.' Dimitri stated plainly. Mark and Oksana glanced at each other, I could tell they were having a conversation of their own. They obviously came to some conclusion as Oksana slowly approached me with her hands outstretched. I somehow knew what she was going to do by the look on her face as well as the worry on Marks. I edged away from her slightly. 'Please don't, I'll be fine. I know what the darkness is like when you heal someone; don't cause yourselves the harm just for me.'

Oksana shook her head and smiled. 'Nonsense Rose, we know our limits, I haven't used the magic in a while, besides, you need is greater than ours.' I thought about it for a moment before nodding slightly, giving her permission.

It was odd being healed without feeling it through the bond as well, but I did feel the familial hot and cold feeling run up my arms and neck, as well as at the back of my head slightly. The ache and irritation in my arms and neck faded away instantly, as well as the throbbing in the back of my head. The process only took a few seconds, but Mark was efficiently by his wife's side before it was over, helping her in more ways than one.

'We should really be going now, it is best for Oksana to rest after a healing, it was lovely to see you again, Dimka. We will see you before you leave for America again.' They both embraced Dimitri and Olena. 'Rose, would you mind walking us to the door?' They asked kindly, walking them to the door was the least I could do after what they did for me. Dimitri gave me a confused glance, to which I shook my head and smiled, assuring him I would be fine.

When we reached the front door, the couple turned to look at me, Oksana spoke first. 'Roza, I see you are afraid of the bond and the darkness. I have the ability to read minds. I have something that will be able to help you, but I will have to give it to you another time, but for now, please be careful. I can tell that your bond mate needs you, but you need someone too.'

'Thank you so much, both of you, I understand the weight of what you did for me just then. Me and Lissa, my bond mate, have never met another bonded pair, we know another spirit user, but he doesn't have a bond mate. I would love to speak with you both again more, you seem to know so much more about this than we do.' I said, somewhat embarrassed to be asking for their help when I hardly know them, but Lissa and I know so little about our bond, the fact that there was another bonded couple right in front of me was crazy.

'We must go home for now Roza, but I promise we will see you again soon, and will be willing to help in any way we can; it is great for us to know another bonded pair as well. And please, don't be embarrassed, we are happy to help.' Much to my surprise, they both hugged me before leaving, I was beyond ecstatic to learn that there was another bonded couple, even to know that Lissa and I aren't the only ones.

I watched Mark and Oksana walk down the street until they were out of sight, then I went back into the living room where Dimitri and Olena were talking between themselves, apparently Dimitri had always suspected that they may have had a bond, but never realised for sure until I pointed it out.

Lissa would be delighted to find out that I had met another bonded pair, for so long we had worried that we were the only ones, that we were alone. This trip was really starting to look up.

 **There we have Chapter 11! Sorry you had to wait a few days for this chapter, I started it and then kind of didn't know where it was going, but I seemed to have picked it up on the way! I really hope you enjoyed this chapter, and I'm really sorry if you didn't! Please feel free to review and feedback you opinions or any improvements or idea's that you'd like to see in the story, as I always love to head your ideas as I often struggle to think of ideas! Once again thank you so much to everyone who has favourited, followed and reviewed this story, I appreciate every single one of you, and love getting the alerts to say someone has reviewed! Thanks again so much, hope you enjoyed!**


	12. Chapter 12

**Dimitri's Point of View.**

I was incredibly grateful that Mark and Oksana had come to visit, especially while Roza was here, I could tell how much she enjoyed from their visit, and it must have been horrible for her and Vasilisa to think they were the only ones who were bonded. Although I had always suspected that there was something different between Mark and Oksana, I had never thought it was my place to ask, of course Rose came out with it as soon as they met, but I suppose it was easier for her to tell, she could pick up on the subtle signs that passed through the married couple.

Roza had spent most of the rest of that day on the phone to Lissa, relaying the information she had learnt about Mark and Oksansa, Vasilisa seemed equally excited, and the thought that they could learn more about their bond brought me a sense of relief. I knew Roza spent a lot of time worrying about the darkness, that it would take over and control her, driving her to do things to herself that she didn't want to do, and that in turn worried me. And so the thought that there were now people who knew more about the darkness and their bond, who were in the same town as us, was exciting.

A few days had passed now since their visit, and our time spent in Baia couldn't be going any better. I loved spending time with my family, even more so now I could share it with Roza. Mama knew that there was more between me and Roza than just student and mentor, and although we hadn't officially told the others, we assumed they would have guessed by now, although we did keep our hands to ourselves while we were in their company.

Rose and I had fallen into a routine of sorts, we were sleeping in the same bed, but I had managed to keep my promise to Alberta and have been able to control myself so far, although Roza and I have been together before, I didn't intend to do it again with my family in the house. We would also go running every morning together, and would often spar together afterwards.

I had spoken to Alberta once when she called me to see how things were going, I informed her that Rose and I were keeping up with our training, and she was still improving as always, which seemed to ease her worry somewhat.

Roza's birthday was fast approaching, although she hadn't mentioned it to me, making me wonder if she was ever going to bring it up, and if she even realised I knew it was her 18th birthday in a matter of days. I intended for the day to be special, I wanted to spoil her like I'd been wanting to do for so long, like she deserved.

Mama was meeting a friend for lunch today, and so Roza and I would be watching over Paul and Zoya, I had also agreed to make some black bread while Mama was out, which Rose was absolutely delighted about, she loved Mama's cooking as much as I knew she would, and she was equally as excited to try mine.

Rose insisted on being present during the whole process of baking the black bread, and so once Zoya was safely tucked up in bed having a nap with the baby monitor on the table, and Paul was playing in the living room with his toys, she sat at the kitchen table and watched as I got everything ready to make the bread.

Although it had been years since I'd made it, I had made it so many times in the past I didn't need to follow a recipe. This impressed Rose as apparently she couldn't even boil pasta without following a recipe.

Rose and I hadn't had chance to spend much time alone recently, and so it was nice to just be around her on our own for a while. After some time she must have got bored of just watching me, as she bravely asked if there was anything she could do to help, I wanted her to feel like she could help but I also struggled to find something that I trusted her to do other than the washing up, especially after hearing all the nightmare-worthy tales of her trying to cook in the past.

I finally decided that she could roll out and knead the dough, I figured there's not a lot that could go wrong with that, but I ended up helping her with most of it anyway, mainly because I enjoyed being close to her.

After laying out the dough on the floured worktop in front of her, I stood behind her so that my arms encircled her and she could see what I was doing with the dough in front of her. After a few seconds her hands joined mine kneading the dough.

Her body was gently pressed up against mine, and I felt the familiar pleasant shock of electricity run up my arms every time our skin touched when our hands brushed each other. Her intoxicating scent surrounded me.

Her backside was in line with my groin, and every so often I would feel her brush herself against me there, I had no idea if she was doing it intentionally, but it was driving me insane. I had to clench my jaw to hold back the groan. It took everything I had not to grab her and pull her flush against me. Not with my nephew in the next room.

She did it once more a lot harder and longer and I knew now she was doing it on purpose. I decided to have a little fun of my own. I gently trailed my fingers up and down her hands as she carried on kneading the dough, I brought my face down so it was level with hers and brushed my lips against her ear and whispered to her. 'That's it Roza, that's good.' My voice was husky and deep, even more so than I thought it would be. I felt the shiver run through her body as my breath tickled her ear and made a few strands of her beautiful hair tickle her face.

I saw the devious smile appear onto her face and at that moment I knew she would beat me at this game, she drove me crazy when she wasn't even trying.

My face was still level with hers, so she turned her face towards me ever so slightly, so we were barely inches apart. 'Am I doing it _hard_ enough, Dimitri?' Her question could have seemed completely innocent if it weren't for the way she said it, and the way she rubbed herself against me once more. Her voice was hoarse and barely a whisper, but I heard her clear as day, and it made it ten times harder to stay in control of myself.

I trailed my hand up her arm until it reached her newly-healed neck; I pushed the hair behind her shoulder and nuzzled my nose into her neck, inhaling deeply. The smell of her was absolutely intoxicating; I placed one small kiss on her neck, before pulling away completely and continuing on with the task at hand.

I knew she hated it when I was hot and cold with her, and so I knew this would drive her as crazy as she was driving me.

I heard her release a frustrated sigh, but she carried on kneading the dough with me.

'It's getting a bit hot in here, wouldn't you say Dimitri?' She said, as she ducked out of my arms and pulled her hoodie over her head. She was only wearing a sports bra underneath. I had seen her in a sports bra hundreds of times while we trained, I knew what she looked like, and it shouldn't have come as a shock to me. But my body reacted at the sight, even more so when she stepped back into my arms. Believe me, I tried not looking down, but when I did my eyes were drawn to the valley of her cleavage, I felt awful for looking, but I think she knew I would and that's why she'd done it.

I had to suppress the growl that was rising in my chest once more. I leant down so my lips were beside her ear again. 'Feeling better now?' My lips brushed her ear and I placed them on the sweet spot just behind her ear that I knew drove her crazy. She tensed up before relaxing, her hands landed on my own as she leant her body back into mine.

'Much better.' She mumbled before she turned her head and her lips met mine. I would never get tired of the feeling of her soft, full lips against mine. She brought her hand up to my neck and tangled her fingers in the ends of my hair. I wrapped one of my arms around the front of her waist and pulled her back so the back of her body was pressed firmly against my front. She could probably feel exactly how excited I was.

The moan that escaped her lips as she moved against me told me that she could feel me; I nipped her bottom lip and growled in return.

She spun herself around so she was facing me now, deepening the kiss as both her arms wrapped around my neck and he chest pressed against mine as she stood on her tip-toes.

I moved my hands down her body until they reached her perfectly toned thighs, I grabbed them both and lifted her so her legs wrapped around my hips. I moved a few steps to the side and then placed her on the worktop, stepping closer to her so her legs were still wrapped around me.

My hands were still gripping her thighs; I ran one of my hands up until it reached the soft skin of her bare stomach, where I gently rubbed my thumb against her skin. She ground her hips against mine and her name escaped my lips in a warning tone.

I moved my lips down to her neck, and then ever so slowly lowered my kisses to her cleavage; the sounds she was making were only spurring me on.

She continued trying to thrust her hips against my own, trying to get as much friction as possible.

I brought my lips to hers once more before pulling away to gaze into her wild eyes, they were dark with lust. 'Roza, don't start something you can't finish.' I warned, I couldn't help the smirk that was on my face as I gazed down at her.

She was kissing and nipping at my jaw and neck as I was talking, and didn't stop when she spoke. 'I intend to finish it.' It was a bold statement and she knew it, but there was no denying the reaction her reply had on my body.

My hips ground into hers as I captured her lips with mine once more. I wish we weren't in the kitchen, and I wish we weren't fully clothed.

I was just about ready to carry her upstairs to our room when we were interrupted by Paul's excited shouts from the living room. 'Roza, come and see what I made with my Lego!'

Roza tore her lips away from mine, she was breathing heavily, as was I. She bit her lip and she gazed up at me. 'I wish you wouldn't do that.' I said while running my thumb across her lower lip. She smiled as she gently pushed me back and hopped off the worktop, before sauntering off into the next room where my nephew was keenly waiting for her.

I couldn't help but watch as her hips swayed from side to side as she left the room, she had me completely wrapped around her finger.

After adjusting my jeans into a more comfortable position, I carried on making the black bread as if nothing happened.

Rose didn't come back into the kitchen until the bread was safely baking in the oven, I probably got it done quicker without her distracting me, not that I didn't enjoy it.

Soon enough my family started to come home after either being at work or meeting up with friends. Roza was in the living room again with my sisters and the kids, while I was helping Mama prepare dinner.

I had spoken with Vika before she went to see Roza, I asked if she could take Rose out of the house tomorrow so that me and Mama could organise things for her birthday, wrapping presents and decorating the house. Vika was delighted at the request and said she'd been meaning to take Rose shopping anyway, so it was a perfect opportunity.

When Vika broke the news to Rose, she didn't seem as excited as Viktoria was expecting, although I wasn't at all surprised, I knew Roza hated shopping, and so when she looked to me for a way out, I gave her none at all. I needed her out of the house and I knew it would do her good.

We spent the rest of the evening with the family, the photo albums were even pulled out at one point, Roza was over the moon that she got to see pictures of me dressed up in my sisters clothes when I was only 6 years old, I would regret that for the rest of my life, she would never let me forget it now.

I caught Roza's eye several times during the evening, and I couldn't help the small smile that would appear on my face every time I looked at her, she seemed to unknowingly smile each time too.

My mind kept flashing back to the moment in the kitchen earlier today, and it made me wonder how long I could hold myself back from her, I was drawn to her like a moth to a flame.

I was hoping I could at least wait until her 18th birthday, although it was only a few days away, I'm sure we could wait until then, right?

 **There we have Chapter 12! I'm really sorry you had to wait a bit longer for this chapter, It's no excuse but I've been so busy and tired these last couple of days I haven't had chance to write! And I hope you're not disappointed with it, I know it's not as long as some of the others, but I'm hoping the cute moment between Rose and Dimitri will make up for it?! I'm also sorry if it got a bit too 'M' rated for a 'T' rated story, and if it happens again in the future I will leave a note at the top saying it may get a bit 'M' rated in this chapter, as I'm not sure if you want to read stuff like that, so please let me know what you want to see in this story, as I love to hear your opinions. Once again thank you so much to everyone who has favourited, followed and reviewed, I've had some really lovely reviews and they really inspire me to keep writing! Thanks again, you'll hopefully be hearing from me soon!**


	13. Chapter 13

_Quick note_ _: Hi guys, I had a bit of trouble uploading the last chapter (chapter 12), and I believe it didn't alert those of you who follow the story that a new chapter has been posted, so I'm really sorry if you missed it, but go back and read it now if you haven't already!_

 **Rose's Point of View.**

Things were going well, really well. Although I hadn't been out much, I loved life here in Baia with Dimitri and his family. I felt at peace here, almost as if I was actually part of a family; I hadn't felt anything like that in so long.

Being around Dimitri the whole time was like a whole new world, one I never wanted to leave. He was so much more relaxed and at ease here, and we'd been stealing more and more moments alone together recently, the one baking the black bread being my favourite by far, I loved teasing him, it was just a shame we couldn't continue what we started, I think he's still trying to hold back.

Vika was taking me shopping today, as much as I tried to think of an excuse for not going, nothing came to mind, I even looked to Dimitri for a way out but he didn't help either. Viktoria had told me to be up and ready at 10 o'clock, which is when we would be leaving.

I woke up to the feeling of soft kisses being trailed from my shoulder to my neck until they reached my lips. I smiled against Dimitri's lips as he whispered good morning against my mouth. Our legs were tangled together, as they always were in the morning after we slept next to each other. His hand was tucked under my pyjama top, resting on my stomach, his fingers lazily massaging the skin there.

It was no surprise to wake up next to Dimitri, we had been sharing the bed for a while now, an arrangement we both much preferred to the shitty little bed on the floor.

Dimitri finally pulled his mouth from mine and I reluctantly opened my eyes for the first time that morning. Dimitri's smiling face was gazing down at me, his eyes held endless amounts of love.

'You need to be ready to go out with Vika in an hour; I thought I'd better wake you up.' He whispered softly.

'Please don't make me go Comrade. You know how much I hate shopping.' He chuckled softly before tucking a strand of hair behind my ear.

'I know, but it's a good chance for you to get out of the house and explore, besides, Vika is really looking forward to it.' I pouted; I knew I wouldn't win this one. I knew Viktoria was really looking forward to taking me shopping; I'd only feel bad if I let her down.

'Fine, fine, I'll go. But why can't you come with us?' Something flickered in his eyes but it was gone before I could figure out what it was.

'I'm sorry Roza, but Mama has lots of job around here for me to do.' I sighed but nodded, I knew he was right. 'Why don't you get dressed and I'll go and make breakfast.'

When I reluctantly agreed he got up out of bed after giving me one last kiss, he pulled on a t-shirt and was out of the door in a few long strides.

I got up and out of bed, shivering as the cool air hit my bare skin. I pulled on a pair of black skinny jeans and a tight fitting thermal top, I put a hoodie on over the top, I knew it would be cold outside, damn Russian weather. I ran a brush through my tangled hair and left it flowing down my back. I put a light coat of mascara on the ends of my eyelashes and put on my favourite lip gloss, before heading downstairs and into the kitchen where the Belikov family were talking animatedly.

They all greeted me when I entered the room and Dimitri pulled out a chair for me and gestured for me to sit down. I sat down as Dimitri put a plate of blini in front of me. Everyone else was just finishing eating their breakfast; Zoya was keenly drinking milk from a bottle Karolina was holding.

Vika was chatting away about all the shops we would be going to and where we would go for lunch, I was nodding along but was mainly focussing on the delicious food in front of me.

As soon as I had swallowed my last mouthful of food, Vika grabbed my hand and practically dragged me out of the door. I shouted a quick goodbye to the family as we charged out of the front door.

We got the bus into town where the bigger shops were, the bus stop was at the end of the street and only took a minute to walk to. The bus journey only lasted 15 minutes.

Vika was so easy to be around and I was really grateful for that. It was never awkward and we never had to struggle to find something to talk about.

'So, are you and Nikolai like, together?' I asked, I hadn't had chance to interrogate her about that since the party, it was clear something was going on there though. She blushed as soon as I mentioned his name and I knew I had hit the jackpot.

'What are you talking about? Th-there's nothing going on between me and Nikolai.' I had never heard Viktoria stutter either.

'Ok, there might not be anything going on _yet,_ but I can definitely tell you both want there to be something going on, so why don't you just tell him?' Her eyes practically bugged out of her head at what I said.

'Well I might like him a _little_ bit, but there's no way he would like me back. He's my friend.' Was this girl blind? There's no way he didn't like her back.

'Are you kidding? I've met the guy once and I could tell how crazy he was about you! The way he looked after you when you were throwing up in the toilet at that party, you have him wrapped around your finger.' She didn't say anything else, but the smile that lit up her face told me everything I needed to know.

Soon enough we were off the bus and onto a long street that was lined with shops and restaurants. There was no shopping mall, just a street full of shops; I couldn't even see a McDonalds, that was a bad sign.

We wondered around a few shops and Vika bought a new top and a skirt, she asked for my opinion on everything she tried on which made me feel like I was actually being useful.

The next shop we entered looked more like a gift shop, there was lots of nice things and I managed to find Christmas presents for Karolina and Sonja, I also got a really nice present for Olena, I even got Yeva a nice gift. Viktoria also got her family presents.

We headed to a toy shop next and I bought Paul a new set of Lego which I knew he would love; I also got Zoya a cuddly stuffed pony.

I still needed to get a Christmas present for Dimitri, I was really starting to worry about what I should get him.

Vika and I were wondering down the street looking for somewhere to eat lunch when a little book shop came into view. I stopped dead in my tracks as I felt a light bulb go off in my head. Vika frowned at me when she noticed I stopped. I pointed at the shop and headed straight in that direction, she realised where I was headed and nodded knowingly.

I felt immediately disappointed as soon as we walked into the shop, everything here was Russian, how was I meant to know what they were?

'Hey look, there's Dimitri's favourite book! He borrowed it from the library as often as he could, but he could never find it in a book store to buy for himself, it must have been years since he last read it.' Viktoria said while she picked up a book. The front cover had a man on a tall black horse with a long flowing mane, and I wasn't at all surprised to find out that this was his favourite book.

I could only see one of this books, it was placed in front of a sign. 'Hey Vika, what does that sign say?' I said, pointing to the sign that was next to the book where we found it.

'It says _Vintage Edition, One of a kind.'_ I smiled at that, it was perfect!

I snatched the book from her hand and practically ran to the lady who was stood behind the till. She spoke to me in Russian, clearly telling me the price, I of course had no idea how much it cost but I just handed her all the money I had in my purse.

She handed me a few notes back and the book in a brown paper bag, I didn't care how much it cost, it was perfect and I knew he'd love it, at least I hoped he would.

We made our way outside and I shivered as the cold air hit me, the sun was high up in the sky but it looked like it might snow soon.

We hurried into a little cafe on the corner of a small street, it looked welcoming and Vika said they do great hot chocolate.

Despite it being broad daylight, I couldn't help but be alert while we were out in the open like this, I knew Strigoi wouldn't be able to hurt up while the sun was up, but I also knew that Strigoi weren't the only thing that posed a danger to us.

I shook off the feeling of unease as we entered the cafe. We took our seats and ordered drinks, Vika ordered soup for the both of us, it sounded just right considering the cold weather outside.

The morning had gone surprisingly fast due to all the shopping we had done, and it was mid-afternoon by the time we finished our lunch and drank the last of our hot chocolates.

We headed outside into the cold once more, the sun was lower in the sky as the sun was slowly starting to set, and we still had a few good hours of sunlight left to get home.

The bus stop was at the end of the street, where there were fewer shops lining the road. The feeling of unease settled through my bones once more, I glanced over my shoulder and saw nothing out of the ordinary. Viktoria was looking at the bus timetable pinned up on the notice board. '15 minutes and the bus will be here.' She said as she rubbed her hands against her arms, keeping warm.

We were waiting for the bus in comfortable silence. I heard shuffling behind me and turned a second too late. Before I knew it a leather gloved hand was pressed firmly over my mouth, the other had grabbed my arms and was now holding them behind my back. My eyes searched the area in a frenzy only to see the same happening to Viktoria. The person holding her was dressed in all black, the only features I could see were their eyes, and they were too far away for me to recognise.

I put up a fight as soon as I felt their hands on me, that didn't go down well. I felt a knee being shoved into my back, efficiently knocking the breath from my lungs.

I blinked once or twice and noticed we were being dragged somewhere, I kicked and fought until they released me. I turned to see at least 5 more men all dressed in black. Viktoria was still being held tight, she was fighting but not nearly as hard as I was, she was scared, I was angry.

The men surrounded me, forming a circle around me. I was careful to keep Vika in my eyesight at all times.

There was one man stood in front of the rest, he didn't have his face covered but I didn't recognise him at all.

'Rosemarie Hathaway.' He slowly walked over to me and put his hand underneath my chin, forcing me to look directly at him. I immediately pulled away and before I could raise my fist to knock that smirk off his disgusting face, my hands were restrained behind my back once more.

He had my face firmly in his hand, I couldn't pull away.

He was dressed in a dark suit, he was definitely a Moroi, and he was taller than me and quite largely built for a Moroi. He had oddly coloured eyes, not brown and not green, somewhere in the middle. He had a beard which had flecks of grey showing through, his face could only be described as menacing or downright evil. The men around him were a mix of Dhampir and Moroi as far as I could tell.

'Who the hell are you and what the fuck do you want?' I growled at him.

He only laughed at me, as if I'd told a joke. 'My my, it's not hard to see where you get your manners from.'

My self control was wearing thin. He must have sensed this as he finally continued talking. 'You are incredibly valuable. You are like a gold mine, endless amounts of riches are held in my hand right now. Did you know that?'

'Cut the crap and tell me what you want, or is this just a hobby of yours, because my friend and I don't really have time to play right now.'

'We'll let you go in a moment or two, we know you have a bus to catch, the Belikov's are expecting you after all.' I heard Vika gasp at the mention of her last name, my stomach dropped, how did he know who they were?

'Now that I've got your attention, please tell me where I can find Ibrahim Mazur.' His Russian accent was so strong it was somewhat difficult to understand what he was saying, I heard him perfectly fine though.

I'd never exactly been held hostage and interrogated before, but my instincts told me it was best to play dumb.

'Who? Are you sure you've abducted the right girls? I have no idea who you're talk-' My lies were cut short when his grip on my chin tightened, causing a sharp pain to run up my jaw and down my neck.

'I do not have time for your lies. I know just how well you know Zmey, now tell me where I can find him.'

I gritted my teeth. 'I don't know where he is, are you deaf as well as crazy?' His face hardened and I knew I'd really pissed him off now.

He raised his hand, I couldn't help but flinch. When I was expecting him to strike me across the face, he held his arm up to his face and glanced at his watch, even that looked expensive, far too expensive to have come from any of the shops we visited earlier.

'Lucky for you, I am on a very tight schedule, and I no longer have time to listen to your lies. But believe me; we will be seeing each other again. And sooner than you think, Rosemarie.'

And with that, Viktoria and I were released, as if the men around us were silently dismissed, they all left. Leaving Vika and I stood in silence. What the fuck just happened?

I finally snapped out of my thoughts and looked to Viktoria, she looked like she was holding back tears. I gently took her hand in my own and tugged her towards the direction of the bus stop. Our shopping bags were still at the bus stop, exactly where we had dropped them, that was one small relief despite what had just happened.

The bus pulled up next to us as soon as we picked up our bags. We silently took our seats on the bus, not saying a word.

I barely blinked the whole way home, I was on full alert. That man said he would be seeing me again sooner than I thought, what the hell did that mean?

His words unsettled me, how did he know so much about me? And why did he think I had anything to do with Abe, I barely knew who he was, I'd only met the man once.

What unsettled me most, however, was that he knew I was staying with the Belikovs, which put them in danger. In fact, _I_ was somehow putting them in danger.

The bus stopped and Vika nudged me, this must have been our stop.

I got up from my seat and carefully made my way down the steps of the bus. It felt like I didn't breathe again until the Belikov house was in view.

I stopped at the end of the drive and took Vika's hand. 'Hey, it's going to be okay, I won't let anything happen to you guys.' Vika looked at me and I could tell she believed what I was saying; she had every inch of faith in me.

We made our way up the steps to the house and opened the front door. The Belikov family were all sitting in the living room waiting for us. They all had smiles on their faces, smiles that dropped as soon as they saw us.

Dimitri was up and on his feet in an instant, taking in our dishevelled appearances.

'What happened? Are you both okay?' He asked, his eyes searching my face.

Their faces were so full of worry; Vika ran straight up to Olena and hugged her tight.

It was my fault what happened earlier; I had put Vika in danger. And it was clear to me now, that somehow I was putting the whole family in danger. Vika would surely tell them all what happened, she would tell them it was my fault we were attacked. What if they kick me out? I wouldn't blame them, but where would I go then?

I had been forced to flee the Academy, what I thought was my only home. Now I had made a home here, and it turns out it wasn't as safe as it appeared.

Vika and I took a seat on the sofa, our shopping bags discarded by the front door. Vika delved into the story of how the men ambushed us. They looked to me for an explanation to what happened, but I didn't have one.

My thoughts were running wild, I couldn't speak. The fear running through my bones was like nothing I had ever felt before.

Although one thing was for sure, I would _not_ let anything happen to this family.

 **There we have Chapter 13! I'm so so sorry for the delay, I had planned to write and upload this chapter sooner, but I could not find the time to write! I have the next few days off so hopefully I'll get another chapter written and uploaded soon! Thank you so much for all the reviews follows and favourites, once again I'm sorry if you had trouble reading the last chapter. Once again thank you so much for reading, I hope you enjoyed the chapter, please let me know what you thought, I love reading your reviews! Thanks again for sticking with me.**


	14. Chapter 14

**Dimitri's Point of View.**

The day had gone well so far; I missed Roza like crazy while she was out shopping with Vika. I was worried about her, as I was every time she was away from me. But I knew she could take care of herself, so I did my best to keep my mind busy while they were away for the day.

I had helped Mama around the house for the morning, she had shelves that needed putting up, and I also tidied the shed out in the garden. After lunch, Mama and I started planning what we could do for Roza's birthday.

I'd already got her present months and months ago, in fact, I had purchased it soon after we met, I always had it with me for her in case she needed it. But I had it personalised just for her. I knew it wasn't a lot, nothing like what someone like Adrian Ivashkov or Vasilisa could get her, but it was personal and somehow I knew she would appreciate the sentiment of it.

Tomorrow was Roza's birthday, and I wanted more than anything to spoil her. I was going to bring her breakfast in bed and cater to her every need all day. Mama was planning on having a few friends round in the evening to celebrate, including Mark and Oksana.

I knew Rose and Vika were having lunch out in town, but as the hours were rolling by, I became more and more anxious.

Sonja and Karo had come how from work by now, and we were all sitting in the living room, I had also spent a lot of the day playing with Paul, I loved being around my family.

My head snapped up in the direction of the front door when I heard the doorknob twist and it opened.

The sight before me made my breath catch in my throat and made my heart clench as if someone was holding it in their fist and they wouldn't let go.

Rose and Viktoria both stood silently in the door way, clutching each other's hand, they both dropped their bags by the door.

I stood up as soon as I saw them. 'What happened? Are you both okay?' I asked stupidly, of course they weren't okay. Vika had tears in her eyes and looked like she'd been crying. Roza's hair was dishevelled and she had a rip in the sleeve of her jumper, what scared me the most was that her face was completely emotionless, Vika looked terrified, but Rose looked as if she didn't feel anything at all.

Vika ran into the room as soon as she saw Mama, and threw herself into Mama's open arms, she started sobbing straight away.

Rose hadn't moved a muscle since she stepped in the door and dropped her bags, her back was tense and her jaw was clenched shut. She just watched Vika run up to Mama and the pain in her eyes was clear as day. I slowly approached her and her eyes flickered towards me. Was she in shock?

I slowly put my arm around her shoulders and tucked a tangled strand of hair behind her ear. I didn't miss her flinch ever so slightly when my hand touched the side of her face, which set off alarm bells in my head.

Vika was already sat on the sofa, cradled in Mama's arms. I gently guided Rose over to the sofa, she plopped down next to Vika, I perched on the arm of the chair, not wanting to stray too far away from her at a time like this. We still had no idea what was going on.

Sonja sent Paul upstairs to play, knowing he shouldn't hear whatever it is they were about to tell us, something had clearly happened.

'What happened?' Karo asked gently, she was looking at Rose, but Rose was just staring at the ground, so Vika was the one to speak.

'W-we were waiting at the bus stop for the bus home, when these men- Dhampir's- grabbed us and pulled us off the street. There were more of them in the alley.' She wiped her eyes before continuing. 'They surrounded us in a circle, they pretty much ignored me, this man, the leader I assume, grabbed Roza. He knew her name, he knew she was staying with us, he said she was really valuable.' Viktoria's voice was hoarse, barely above a whisper.

My hand was gently resting at Roza's back, rubbing circles there, I was trying to reassure her as best as I could, but I really wasn't sure how. 'Roza, did you know the man?' I asked as gently as I could. Her eyes snapped up to my face as if I'd made her jump. She didn't utter a word, she only shook her head.

Vika took this as her cue to continue. 'He wanted to know about Ibrahim Mazur- Zmey- Roza said she didn't know who he was, she's only met him once after all. He said he knew she was lying. He told her he'd be seeing her soon, sooner than she thinks, and they left.' Vika was still pressed up close to Mama.

'Were either of you hurt?' Mama asked gently. Roza didn't acknowledge the question, but Vika said she didn't think so, but they did get a bit rough with Rose. It made my blood boil.

We sat in silence for a while, no one really knowing what to say. Most of the attention was on Roza, she still hadn't spoken a word since they'd come home, that was worrying me to no end.

Mama put her hand on Roza's arm; she looked up into my mother's worried face. 'Roza, are you alright?'

Roza blinked and it was as if she had snapped out of whatever trance she was in. She stood up so fast I would have missed it if I'd blinked. 'I'm fine, really. I suppose I should be going now, you've all been so good to me, but I must have outstayed my welcome by now, especially now.' She was pacing back and forth as she spoke, her arms flailing in the air as if to mirror the emotions running through her mind.

She headed out of the room but I caught her before she could take another step. 'Roza, what are you talking about? We don't want you to go anywhere.' I put my hands on either side of her face so she couldn't look away from me; I didn't care if this was all happening in front of my whole family.

'Don't you get it, Dimitri? I'm putting you all in danger. You heard what he said; he's coming back for me. I can't be around you guys when he does.' Is that what she thought? 'You can't really want me here, so I'll make it easier for you all and I'll just go.' She tried to get out of my grip but I held her tighter.

'You are _not_ going anywhere, Roza. You are staying right here, with us, where we know you will be safe.' She bit her lower lip and I wanted nothing more than to kiss it and make all her pain go away.

All the tension left her body and I knew she would drop it for now. I gently released my grip on her.

Mama got up from her space next to Vika and slowly approached Rose, as if she was afraid to frighten her and she would threaten to flee again. My mother wrapped Rose into a tight hug; I saw the tear slip down her cheek before she hastily brushed it away. My mother kissed her on the forehead before she pulled away and went back to Vika.

Rose turned to the family; they were all looking at her expectantly now. 'I think I'll have an early night tonight, have a shower. I'm really sorry I put you through that Vika, all of you really.' She looked nervously between each member of my family before her eyes settled on Vika, who got up and hugged her tight.

'Stupid girl, apologising for something you have no control over.' Yeva mumbled loud enough for Rose to hear, and in English.

Rose gazed at Yeva for a moment, as if she held all the answers to her worries, maybe she did. She then quietly bid us all goodnight before heading upstairs. I wanted to follow her so badly, but I knew she would need time to herself.

As if sensing my thoughts, Yeva spoke up. 'Just leave her for a moment Dimka, the girl needs some time to process what she's going through.' Something was wrong, Yeva had been nothing but hostile to Roza since she got here, now she's suddenly defending her and looking out for her? She must know something.

I gave Roza an hour before I finally headed upstairs. Vika had already taken herself off to bed after saying she wasn't hungry when Mama offered her food.

I went to the bathroom and brushed my teeth before heading into my room, I didn't want to have to disturb Roza by getting up again to do it later.

Roza was lying on the bed wearing nothing but one of my old shirts when I walked in, it almost came down to her knees, her hair was a damp tangle of curls splayed around her face. My god she was breathtaking. If it wasn't such an awful time, I would take her and worship every inch of her body, but I knew that's not what she needed right now.

Her body was relaxed and the features of her face were slack, her eyes were open but I knew she wasn't seeing anything in this room, she was with Vasilisa.

It always sent a shock through me to see Roza so completely vacant and unresponsive, I hated seeing her like that but I knew it was something she liked to do often to keep an eye on Vasilisa.

I pulled my jeans off and slipped into the bed beside her and patiently waited for her to come back to me.

She came back to herself with a deep inhale of breath, letting it go slowly. She gazed up into my eyes for just a moment before shuffling over closer to me, my arms wrapped around her almost on instinct, she fitted perfectly against me.

'How are you feeling Roza?' I asked, I knew it would be stupid to ask if she was okay again, when obviously she wasn't.

'I'm fine, just confused, and pissed off. I hate that Vika had to go through that just because of me.' I felt like she was going to continue, but something held her back.

I gently stroked her head, tangling my fingers in the curls. 'It's not your fault. That man obviously thinks you have something to do with Zmey, which is frankly ridiculous, you've only met him once and you didn't even know who he was. I'm sure it'll all blow over.' I really wanted to believe what I was saying, but the chances were that they didn't pick on Roza randomly.

'I'm sure you're right, there's no way I can have anything to do with a man like that.' She murmured with conviction, I hoped she wasn't brushing this off for my benefit.

I was about to say something else to reassure her but any words I was about to speak were cut off when her lips pressed against mine.

One of her small hands was resting on my chest while the other wrapped around my neck, her touch still sent shocks down my body. The arm I had resting around her waist tightened, pulling her closer to me.

I poured every ounce of love I had into that kiss, I needed her to know how much I loved her, and that I was there for her.

I slowly pulled away and gazed down at her, tears had begun to fall from her cheeks. I wiped them away before they could get too far.

'I love you, Roza.' Despite the tears that had fallen only seconds ago, she smiled.

'I love you too, Dimitri. And I'm sorry, for everything.' Her voice was rough and strained, there was something in her eyes that I couldn't identify.

'You have nothing to be sorry for. Now get some sleep, you must be exhausted.' She looked at me for a moment longer before nodding and settling down against me; her head was resting against my chest, her arms wrapped tightly around me, as mine were around her.

I placed a kiss to her head and murmured to her in Russian until I felt all the tension leave her body as she fell asleep. Sleep overcame me soon after, and I succumbed to the darkness.

She still hadn't mentioned a thing to me about her birthday being tomorrow, I wondered why she didn't want me to know. Vasilisa had planned ahead for Rose's birthday, and made sure I knew what date it was, she had also given me presents to give her from everyone back home.

My dreams were filled with Rose, as they were every night. This time she was standing beside a masked man, they were both running from me, no matter how fast I ran and how much I urged my legs to carry me further, they always outran me, she always slipped from my grasp.

I woke with a start; I bolted upright in bed, covered in a thin sheen of sweat, breathing heavily. I glanced down at Roza's sleeping form beside me. I glanced at the clock; it was 8 in the morning. I figured now was a good time to get up and make Roza breakfast. Mama was pottering around in the kitchen when I went down.

'How is Roza, son?' She asked gently while kissing my cheek in greeting.

'She seems okay. She hasn't even mentioned that it's her birthday, I wouldn't even know if the Princess hadn't told me before we left.' I said while preparing breakfast.

'Perhaps she just doesn't want to make a big deal about it, it must be hard being away from her friends on her birthday.' I knew she was probably right, Rose strangely didn't seem like the kind of person to make a big deal about her birthday, well tough, I was going to make it a big deal.

I placed the piled plate of blini on a tray, along with a glass of orange juice, as well as a red rose in a small vase. I carefully carried the tray upstairs and placed it on the bedside table closest to Rose, she was still fast asleep, no surprise there.

I sat down beside her and trailed my hand up her arm, she was still asleep but I felt the shiver run through her body. I slowly lowered my face to hers and placed my lips over hers. I felt her smile against my lips.

'Happy Birthday Milaya.' I whispered against her lips.

Hey eyes snapped open and she pulled her face away from mine as soon as the words left my mouth, I couldn't help but frown at her reaction.

She sat up in bed and glanced at the tray of food on the bedside table. 'How the hell did you know it was my birthday?' She asked, completely shocked.

I took her hand in my own and kissed it, her body relaxed instantly. 'Vasilisa told me before we left. Why didn't you tell me Roza?'

She sighed in defeat. 'I should have known she'd have something to do with it. I just don't like to make a big deal of my birthday, I never have.'

'That's ridiculous, it's your 18th birthday, and it's special. What do you want to do today?' I asked her while I placed the tray of food on her lap. Her face lit up when she saw the steaming pile of blini in front of her.

'Nothing, I just want to be with you and your family today. I still feel awful about yesterday.' I moved next to her and kissed her temple.

'That's ok, we can have a quiet day today, but Mama has got some friends coming round tonight; Mark and Oksana are coming too.' She seemed to cheer up a bit at that.

'It'll be nice to see them again. Thank you for doing this for me Dimitri.' She said while gesturing to the half eaten blini in front of her.

'You're welcome Roza, we'll head downstairs when you've finished your breakfast, and you've got presents to open.' Her face lit up like a Christmas tree at the mention of presents, and she threw herself into my arms and kissed me right on the lips, I chuckled against her lips. I wanted today to be special for her.

 **There we have Chapter 14! I was going to wait to have Rose's birthday, but it kind of worked out well for it to happen this chapter. I'm really looking forward to writing the next chapter in Rose's point of view, there's a lot going on in her head right now. I know you were all expecting Rose to run away in this chapter, but there's still time! ;) We'll also be hearing for Yeva next chapter which I'm looking forward to. Thank you so much to everyone who has favourited, followed and reviewed this story, I appreciate every one of you. I really hope you enjoyed this chapter!**


	15. Chapter 15

_Hi guys, quick warning, there is an ever so slightly 'M' rated scene towards the end of this chapter. It's nothing at all explicit, but I just thought it was worth mentioning._

 **Rose's Point of View.**

I packed my bag as soon as I went upstairs to shower last night. I felt awful about it, I really did. I planned to be back in a few days. I had to find Zmey and I had to get answers.

I was planning on sneaking out when no one was looking, or during the night, but I was so tired I slept right through, and I woke up to Dimitri wishing me happy birthday.

Him knowing it was my birthday made this whole thing so much more difficult. He brought me breakfast in bed and treated me like a Princess, how was I supposed to leave him when he was so perfect to me?

I should have just left last night when I had the chance, now I'll have to go through the whole day, being spoilt rotten, I don't deserve any of it.

Last night I took a backpack out of Dimitri's wardrobe and stuffed it with a spare set of clothes, as well as my toothbrush and a few other essentials, I hid it under the bed. I only planned to be gone for a day or two, if that.

I could put my plans off for a day, I owed it to Dimitri to be with him today, and he had already gone to so much trouble to be there for me.

I reluctantly got out of bed and Dimitri led me downstairs, where the whole family was already up. There was purple balloons handing from the banister as well as a few more dotted around the living room.

'Happy birthday Roza!' Paul yelled as he charged up to me and hugged me tight, I returned the hug without a second thought. Each of the Belikov women hugged me after, each wishing me happy birthday. Yeva kept her distance.

I was led over to the sofa, where a steaming mug of hot chocolate was placed in front of me by Olena, I thanked her gratefully.

I was handed a hand-made card by Paul, he had signed Zoya's name as well. The front of the card was decorated with a hand-drawn picture of the whole of the Belikov family; I was there too, right in the middle. I hugged Paul and kissed Zoya on the cheek, thanking them both, Zoya just giggled.

Vika handed me a present next, saying it was from her, Sonja and Karolina. I opened the perfectly wrapped box to reveal a beautiful black top. It was a silky material and had cold shoulders, it had a V-neck collar and I bet it would look great with my black skinny jeans. I got up and hugged each of the girls. 'Thank you guys so much, it's beautiful!'

Olena stood up next, she handed me a card and a small neatly wrapped gift box, I opened the card first, the message inside meant so much to me.

 _Roza,_

 _Happy Birthday, I hope you have a wonderful day, and let yourself be spoilt for once._

 _My son is lucky to have someone like you in his life. Welcome to the family._

 _With love, Olena and Yeva._

I swallowed the lump that had formed in my throat and unwrapped the gift. Inside the small box held a beautiful pair of silver earrings.

I couldn't believe they had gone to all this trouble just for me.

Dimitri handed me a card with two gifts next, one was a box and the other a small item. I opened the card first, it was written with his perfectly beautiful handwriting, delicate, much like everything else he does.

 _My Roza,_

 _Happy Birthday, enjoy your day getting spoilt, how you truly deserve to be treated.  
No words will ever be able to explain how grateful I am that you are in my life. _

_All my love, Dimitri._

The personal card and the even more intimate message inside made my heart clench in my throat, I didn't deserve Dimitri, I didn't deserve to be spoilt.

I didn't hesitate for a second, I dropped the card onto the coffee table in front of me and threw myself into Dimitri's arms, I hugged him as tight as I could and kissed his cheek, never wanting to let go.

I cleared my throat after I realised that his whole family watched my little outburst, and untangled my arms from Dimitri's, picking up the small present.

I unwrapped the gift to find a tube of my favourite lip gloss. He had got me a tube once before, when we went shopping with Lissa and Victor Dashkov, the sentiment was not lost on me.

I reached for the box next, more sceptically this time; I had no idea what it could be.

I opened the box and removed the red tissue paper covering the object, to reveal a silver stake; the smooth edges had been intricately carved with markings that resembled vines climbing all the way from the base right up until the sharp point at the end of the stake. It was beautiful.

I slowly lifted the stake from its place in the box and held it in my hands, the smooth silver felt almost comforting in my hands, as if it was made to be held by me.

Dimitri gently turned the stake so that it was facing away from me, where my initials were engraved onto the base of the stake. Making it even more personal. I didn't have a stake of my own yet, novice's typically don't get them until they graduate, but the fact that Dimitri had given this to me, made it all the more special.

I wouldn't have been able to wipe the smile off my face if I tried. I gently placed the stake back in the box and turned to face Dimitri once more. 'This is incredible Comrade, you have no idea how much it means to me. Thank you.' I hugged him again, in a more controlled manner this time.

'You're welcome, Roza.' He said while gently embracing me, his voice was deliciously deep, I was all too aware of his hand resting gently on my lower back.

Dimitri pulled out yet another gift box and card, which he explained were from Lissa, she had given them to him before we left. The box revealed a delicate but strong silver bracelet, it was beautiful, I bet it wasn't cheap either.

We heard the post fall through the letterbox then, and Paul ran to retrieve it as he did every morning, then handed the letters out to whoever they were addressed to, I never got one of course, and I didn't actually live there. That was why I was confused when Paul handed the last letter to me.

I checked the front to make sure it as actually addressed to me, and there my name was staring back at me, clear as day.

Something about the letter made me shift away from Dimitri, so that he wouldn't be able to see it.

I slowly opened the envelope to reveal a birthday card, the message inside was written in hand-writing I didn't recognise, making me all the more curious.

 _Dear Rosemarie,_

 _Happy Birthday._

 _1 Leninsky Avenue, on the outskirts of Baia._

 _See you soon, Abe._

I felt my eyes widen as I read the words, I tried to stop myself from reacting, so that no one would ask questions.

Several unanswerable questions swarmed into my mind at once. One being how the hell did Zmey know it was my birthday, another being why was there an address written in the card and where was the address he had written down?

It was as if he knew what I was thinking, as if he knew I needed answers and he was the only one that could give them to me.

'Who is the card from Roza?' Vika asked, perfectly sincerely.

'Mark and Oksana, they must have posted it before they knew we'd be seeing them today.' I said as nonchalantly as possible, while putting the card back in the envelope with the other cards in a pile. Trying to make my movements as casual as possible, giving myself a mental high-five for thinking of a response so quick.

The rest of the day ran smoothly, Dimitri was by my side the whole time. I enjoyed spending time with his family, and selfishly enjoyed being spoilt by them all, I didn't deserve it.

Lissa and I had a FaceTime call in the afternoon, she was upset she couldn't spend the day with me, but cheered up when I told her how much I loved the bracelet she had given me. I missed Lissa and indescribable amount, and another tonne of guilt landed on me when I realised that I couldn't tell her what was really going on with me. I think she sensed that something was amiss, but she didn't ask, much to my relief. I hadn't told her anything about Dimitri and I, or about Abe and Vika and I being ambushed, she would only worry.

The evening soon approached, I had dressed in the top the Belikova girls had got me for my birthday, and paired it with a black skirt and tights, I wanted to dress up, it was my birthday after all.

I walked downstairs after getting ready to find Dimitri waiting for me, he extended his hand as I approached, I ignored it and walked straight into him, holding him close to me. 'I love you, thank you so much for all of this.' I whispered against his neck, I was a similar height to him as I was two steps up.

'You're welcome, my Roza.' He said while trailing gentle kisses from my neck all the way up to my lips.

The doorbell soon rang out through the house and Olena rushed to answer it, fast Russian accents flooded my ears, and it sounded like there were more people than just Mark and Oksana. I put a smile on my face, I would get through this.

I was dragged over to the guests and embraced Mark and Oksana, I was then introduced to a few more of Olena's friends who she had invited, they all seemed pleasant enough but I had forgotten their names within minutes.

Olena had outdone herself and served up a feast, many dishes I had never heard of, but they were all delicious.

Once all the plates were cleared, Karolina walked back into the room with a bottle of what resembled vodka in one hand, and as many shot glasses as she could carry in the other.

'You know I'm 18 today, not 21 right?' I asked when she placed a glass in front of me.

Dimitri chuckled beside me before explaining. 'The legal drinking age is 18 in Russia, and it's tradition for the family to have a shot of Russian vodka when someone turns 18.' Everyone around the table had a shot poured for them except pregnant Sonja and Vika, who was too young, much to her dismay.

Everyone around the table chanted something in Russian, which I could only assume was _Happy Birthday,_ and we all downed our drinks.

I regretted it as soon as the liquid hit the back of my throat. Swallowing it was even worse.

'Shit!' I couldn't hold back the series of coughs that followed the swear word. 'Are your mouths made of steel or something?' I questioned, glancing at everyone around the table, they all had amused expressions on their faces.

'Oh Roza, we've been drinking this stuff for years, and it's in our blood to have a high tolerance to alcohol!' I huffed at that, damn Russians.

Oksana pulled me away from the rest of the group at one point during the night; she pulled out a small material bag from her pocket and handed it to me without saying a word. I slowly opened the bag and inside was a plain silver ring. I lifted the ring and slipped it on my finger, it fit perfectly. As soon as the ring found its spot circling my middle finger, I felt a sense of calm wash over me, I was sure I could sense power radiating from the ring, but that wasn't possible, was it?

'What is this? It feels... different.' I questioned, she gave me a knowing smile as if she knew I would ask that exact question.

'It is charmed with spirit, young Rose. Mark and I have found that wearing charmed silver objects helps the effects of spirits darkness. It starts to wear off after a few months, but I think you will find it useful.' She explained. I guessed charming the ring wouldn't have been easy for me. It was odd how kind she was to me, she barely even knew me.

'Thank you so much, you have helped me so much since I've been here, I'll never be able to thank you enough for what you've done.' I said while pulling her into a hug.

The rest of the night went by in a blur; we played games and danced to music I didn't recognise. I felt like I was part of something here, like I belonged.

It must have been around midnight when the guests finally left and Dimitri and I made our way upstairs, after thanking everyone again for a perfect day, and for their presents.

Dimitri's arms wrapped around my waist as soon as the bedroom door was shut, I turned to face him and his lips met mine. My arms went around his neck almost on instinct, and I pulled his hair out of the hair-band holding it together at the nape of his neck and ran my fingers through the strands.

'You look so beautiful tonight Roza.' He murmured against my lips, my most logical response was to deepen the kiss.

I stepped out of my shoes and began to unbutton Dimitri's shirt while his kisses moved down to my neck and shoulder. I could never grow tired of the feeling of his lips against my skin.

I eagerly pushed Dimitri's shirt off his shoulders when the last button was undone, I pulled back slightly and gazed at his chest and abs, he was incredibly.

His chest was in-line with my face due to his height; I gently lay my hands on his stomach and felt the muscles move beneath my touch as my lips teased his chest and neck.

Dimitri reached for the bottom of my top and gently tugged it upwards until it went over my head and fell to the floor near where his shirt had been discarded.

I trailed my hands down his chest once more until I reached for his belt buckle. I started to undo it when Dimitri caught my hands in his. 'Roza.' He said between kisses. 'Don't start something you can't finish.' He had said the same thing to me once before, when we were making blackbread in the kitchen, we didn't get to finish what we were doing then, but I fully intended to finish it now.

'Who says I'm not going to finish it?' I said, my voice was lower and huskier than I expected. A low growl escaped him as his lips found mine again. I took that as a sign to continue and pulled his trousers down, his length was now firmly pressed up against my thigh, it was very distracting.

I knew he would be worried about pushing me to do anything and so I pulled my skirt and tights down my legs myself, almost making a show of it as he stepped back and watched me. I stood up straight and I was lying back on the bed with Dimitri above me before I could take a breath.

Our underwear was soon gone and he was inside me soon after. It had been too long since I had first been with Dimitri like this, in the cabin. I missed the feeling of him, I was nervous the first time, but there were no nerves now, it was only pure want and need and love now. It made me wonder why we held back for so long.

Dimitri worshipped every inch of my body that night, and I was all too keen to return the favour.

Dimitri lay beside me later that night, tracing patterns on my bare stomach with his fingers. I pretended to be asleep until he stopped and his breathing evened out and I knew he was asleep. It didn't take him too long to fall asleep; I didn't blame him after what we had just done.

When I was one hundred percent sure the naked God beside me was asleep, I slowly slipped out of the bed, which was not easy considering I was wrapped up tightly in his arms.

I got dressed into my typical black jeans with a plain top and thick jumper over the top, I slipped on the ring Oksana had given me and put my new stake in my pocket, I felt a lot safer knowing I had it close to me. I pulled out the pre-packed backpack from under the bed, and got out the letter I had written the night before for Dimitri, I placed it on my pillow beside his beautiful resting face.

I hesitated as my hand reached for the doorknob, could I really do this to him? He had been wonderful to me, was I really prepared to throw that all in his face now? I knew one thing though, I had to find answers and I wasn't prepared to put Dimitri in danger by bringing him along with me. With one last wistful look in his direction, I opened the door and stepped into the hallway. I had to pass everyone's bedroom before I reached the stairs, so I walked along as quietly as possible and just prayed that no one would walk out of their room at this time.

One door was cracked open ever so slightly, shining a low light into the hallway. I stopped dead in my tracks.

'Come here, Roza.' The heavily accented voice was not difficult to recognise, it was Yeva. I should have known.

I pushed the door open until I saw her sitting in an armchair in the corner of the room, a half knitted jumper placed on her lap.

'Sit.' She ordered, while gesturing to her bed. I didn't bother taking the backpack off my shoulders as I sat down, I was hoping I wouldn't have to be here long.

'I had a vision of you, girl. Leaving in the middle of the night to chase the snake.' She didn't say it in an accusing tone at all, she was simply stating facts.

'I'm sorry, I feel terrible, and it's just something I feel like I have to do. I'll come back when I know what I need to know, if I'll still be welcome.' I was rambling on; she just carried on knitting as if she didn't care what I had to say.

'Of course you will always be welcome here, silly girl. Zmey has the answers to the questions you wish to ask. Just remember who you are, remember the people who love you. Now off you go, I've already paid for the taxi waiting downstairs for you.' She had called a taxi? I hadn't really thought about how I was supposed to get to this unknown address until now, and I was grateful Yeva had taken the time to ring for me.

'Thank you, Yeva. I won't forget what you've done for me.' I stood up and she took my hand into hers, but remained seated.

'I know you won't, girl. I think it's about time you started calling me Babushka.' I smiled and thanked her once more before leaving the room and making my way downstairs and out the front door. True to her word there was a taxi waiting outside for me. I rushed into the backseat and handed the driver the card with the address on it, he nodded and started the engine.

I glanced back at the Belikov's house once more, no turning back now. A stab of pain spread through my chest when I thought about how Dimitri would react in the morning, finding my letter after our intimate night together. I had to hope that he would forgive me one day, although I wouldn't blame him if he didn't.

I turned back around in my seat, facing the road ahead. It wasn't until I felt a teardrop trickle down my cheek that I realised I was crying.

 **There we have chapter 15! A bit of a longer chapter this time, I really enjoyed writing it. I kind of wrote it bit by bit over a few days, as I don't have much time to write on Monday's and Tuesdays. I'm hoping to write some more tomorrow and Friday, so hopefully there will be another update coming soon. I really hope you enjoyed this chapter, please let me know if you did or didn't, as I love to hear from you all! Thanks again to every single one of you who has followed, favourited and reviewed this story. Thanks again for reading, I hope you enjoy the chapter, let me know what you think!**


	16. Chapter 16

**Dimitri's Point of View.**

It didn't take long for me to fall asleep, I couldn't think of anything better than being wrapped up in bed with Roza's bare body against mine. I had spent the majority of the day by her side, I just wanted to be close to her on her birthday, it was clear she never made much of a deal about her birthday before, I wanted to change that.

I was so glad I could finally give her the stake; I had been carrying it round with me soon after I met her, in case she ever needed it. She appreciated the sentiment of the gift, just as I knew she would. I was delighted that I got to see her let herself get spoilt all day, she needed some time to let herself be appreciated.

Rose was given a large collection of jewellery for her birthday, I was somewhat disappointed with myself for not giving her something more valuable, but she seemed to appreciate my gifts just as much if not more. Besides, I had the rest of my life left to spoil her rotten.

Despite the success of the day, I couldn't help but feel that something was amiss with Rose. She seemed distracted, almost like she was at war with herself about something, like she was distancing herself from the rest of us. I didn't want to ruin her day by bringing it up on her birthday, it could wait until tomorrow.

I felt at peace when Roza was beside me, whenever I was with her really, like that was where we were supposed to be.

Being with her intimately again last night had been incredible, it made me wonder why I tried to keep away from her for so long. I was gentle with her for her first time in the cabin, but she didn't seem to want me to worry about that last night.

My dreams, as always, were filled with Rose. Since Rose had come back to the academy, waking up in the morning wasn't quite as difficult as it had once been; our training and our friendship meant I had something that was worth waking up for.

But now we were back home, and together, and I knew I would wake up with Roza by my side, I looked forward to waking up each morning.

I woke up feeling colder than usual; I opened my eyes and blinked once or twice to let my eyes adjust to the light pouring through a crack in the curtains. My hand instinctively reached out to the side, reaching for Roza. I sat upright, startled, when my hand brushed over nothing but the cold sheets beside me.

Roza was gone, and she'd been gone a while.

I glanced at the clock on my bedside table, it was nearly 10am, and I had slept later than I normally would have. But Roza hated getting up early, there's no way she'd get up so early for no reason. A thought dawned on me then, did she regret what happened last night? She seemed to enjoy it at the time; in fact, I know she enjoyed it at the time.

The thoughts swirling in my head were halted when my eyes fell on a folded piece of paper placed neatly on the pillow where Roza's resting head should have been.

I snapped up the paper and opened it; the words were rushed out onto the paper in Roza's familiar handwriting. My heart stopped.

 _Dimitri,  
I am so sorry for doing this, you have been beyond perfect to me, but this is something I have to do, and I have to do it alone. It wouldn't be fair for me to drag you and your family into my problems any more than I have already. I need answers and I know where I can find them. I'll be back soon, I promise. I'm so sorry.  
All my love, Roza._

No. No this couldn't be real. I sat for some time, reading her message over and over again. Why would she do this? Why would she go alone? She knows it's not safe out there! If she's not prey to Strigoi she is certainly prey to predatory Moroi. Did she even take any protection with her? I leapt out of bed at speed that would put a Strigoi to the test. I searched my room top to bottom until I came across what I was looking for, the box her stake came in.

I took a deep breath before opening it. I breathed a sigh of relief when I saw the box empty of the powerful silver weapon. I had to thank God that she took her stake with her; at least she would have some form of protection. I found a few things missing in my hunt around the room. I noticed one of my backpacks was gone, along with some of Roza's clothes.

Something told me this wasn't a spontaneous trip; she had been planning this for a while.

I knew she wanted to leave after what happened to her and Vika, she had told me so herself. But when she was still there the morning of her birthday and she spent all day by my side, and after what happened last night. I thought perhaps she didn't want to run away anymore. Hadn't I given her enough reason to stay?

I knew there was something different about her yesterday, she seemed distant, and this must be why. Had she been thinking about it all day? I hadn't even asked her about it, now she's gone, where could she have gone?

I threw on the closest pair of trousers and top I came across in my wardrobe and strode down the hallway and down the stairs. Vika, Mama and Yeva were sitting in the living room with the kids; I assumed Karo and Sonja were at work.

They all looked casual, as if nothing was amiss, as if the love of my life wasn't missing.

"Have any of you seen Roza?" I demanded.

"Not since last night, isn't she upstairs?" Mama responded, not looking away for Zoya, she clearly didn't pick up on the urgency in my voice.

"No. She left me a note, and she's gone." That made Mama look up, Vika's eyes snapped up to meet my worried look then. Babushka still hadn't looked up from her knitting, I tried to ignore it.

I pulled the note out of my back pocket and handed it over to my Mother and little Sister. Their facial expressions changed from curiosity to worry in a matter of seconds.

"What does she need answers about? Zmey?" Vika asked slowly.

"I guess so, why wouldn't she tell me she was going?" I asked no one in particular, not really wanting an answer.

"Because she knew you would stop her." Babushka mumbled in our home language, as if she had just stated the most obvious thing in the world. My eyes travelled over to where her frail body was sitting in the arm chair, she still wasn't looking up.

I knelt down beside her so my face was level with hers. "What do you know?" I said through gritted teeth, it was hard not to shout and demand she tells me what she knows.

"Don't use that tone of voice with me, boy. I made sure your Roza reached her destination safely, you need not worry." The clicking of her knitting needles was wearing my patience thin.

"Care to tell me where that destination is?" I sat on the floor then and put my head in my hands. How did this happen?

"No. It is not necessary for you to know." She said matter-of-factly.

That was the last straw for me. I got up and charged to the door. "You're wasting your time, boy." I heard my grandmother say as I took the car key off the hook and stormed out of the front door.

I reached the car in about three steps, and almost ripped the door off the car in my nervous rage.

I was by no means angry, I was frustrated. Why would she go alone? Was she really out looking for Abe fucking Mazur?

I realised I hadn't even texted her yet, it was unlikely she would reply, but she had to know I needed her to come home. I sent her multiple texts, all begging her to come back to me. I rang and left her voicemails too. The texts were delivering but she hadn't read any of them.

My knuckles turned white as my grip on the steering wheel tightened as I drove the car out of the driveway. I had no idea where I was headed; I had no idea where she could be. But I knew one thing for sure; I couldn't just wait around for her to come back, if she ever did come back.

I had no way of contacting Abe either, although we knew him from years ago, what felt like a life time ago, he had never left us a way to contact him afterwards. Zmey always seemed to turn up wherever he was needed, but never invited.

The thought that Rose was involved with a man like him in any way made a chill run through my bones. Abe Mazur was a dangerous man known to many around Russia; he kept a very low profile and never seemed to stay in the same place for too long. Even the thought of her being in the same room as him made my blood boil. What did he want with her?

I was driving for hours, I went all around town, and I went everywhere I could think of, but still no sign of her. I called her 20 more times and texted too many times to count while I was driving. I knew I shouldn't have been texting and driving, at least if I crashed it would take my mind away from Rose.

The sun was starting to set and I knew there was nothing more I could do than go home and wait for her there. Baia was a big town; it was like looking for a needle in a haystack.

The whole family was waiting for me in the kitchen when I finally got home. "Any sign of her?" Mama asked after kissing my cheek. I should have felt guilty about storming out like that, I knew she'd be worried about me as well as Rose, but I didn't have room to feel anything other than worry.

Babushka chuckled from the corner of the room when Mama asked if I'd seen Rose. Her riddles were going to drive me crazy.

I turned to look at her, I tried to look as least menacing as possible, but it was hard to keep my emotions off my face at a time like this. I had always been so stoic and controlled; I had always been able to wipe the emotions off my face within the blink of an eye. But when it came to Roza my heart was in my hand, she brought out the most extreme emotions in me. Roza would always joke about my guardians mask, she could always see right through me. The thought of her made my heart clench.

"Please, Babushka, tell me something. You have to know if she's safe, do you know where she is?" I saw a flash of hesitation cross her aged eyes.

Her voice was quiet and raw; there was an element of undeniable truth in everything Yeva says. "I do not know where she is, I know that she can look after herself, she is being taken care of. You should be worrying about when she comes back, that's when things will change."

 **There we have Chapter 16! I'm really really sorry that it's short, but I'm hoping to update again this weekend with Rose's point of view, which will hopefully be a lot longer; this was really just a filler chapter before we get to Rose's turn. But I also wanted to show what was going on in Dimitri's head. Thanks to everyone who has reviewed, followed and favourited, I really appreciate it! I'm hoping to update again tomorrow but not sure I'll have time to write a whole chapter, if not it will be Sunday as it is my birthday on Saturday! Thanks again for reading, I hope you enjoyed it, and sorry again it was short!**


	17. Chapter 17

**Rose's Point of View.**

I must have fallen asleep in the taxi. For just a fraction of a second after I woke up I expected to be tucked up in bed with Dimitri, instead I woke up in a cold taxi with an aching neck and my hands gripping my stake tightly in my pocket, the taxi driver was talking to me in Russian.

"Are we here?" I asked after yawning. I glanced out the window into the pitch black night. There wasn't much around; trees surrounded the car and the winding road we must have driven down to get here. Then my eyes landed on the house. House wasn't really the right word to describe the building outside; it was more of a mansion. It was made of grey brick with tall windows and pillars lining the front of the building, it was magnificent.

The taxi driver nodded and looked at me expectantly. I searched my pockets and only found a couple of American dollars. "Sorry, this is all I have." I said as I handed him the bills, he seemed happy enough with them.

I shoved open the door and stepped into the cold night air with the backpack hanging safely on my shoulders. There was a thin layer of snow coating the ground. It was then that it dawned on me that I literally had no idea where I was, I fell asleep on the drive here, I have no idea how long it even took to get here. I couldn't see any other houses in the area. If this went badly and I needed a quick escape, I would be well and truly fucked.

Maybe I shouldn't have come in the middle of the night; surely anyone living here would be asleep. I didn't even know for sure if this Abe guy even lived here, he could have written the wrong address down or by accident or something.

I couldn't stop my mind form wandering back to Dimitri, as it always did. He would be so worried when he woke up, I hoped my letter would ease his panic slightly, but in all honesty I doubted it would.

I stood facing the house for a few moments after the taxi drove off; I wasn't entirely sure what I was meant to do now.

There was a long path and steps to walk up leading to the house, but lights were on in the windows, I guess that meant whoever lives here was awake. I'm not just going to stand out here until morning, the most reasonable thing I could think of to do was to approach the house.

The grip I had on my stake didn't falter as I cautiously approached the house, I tried to think of everything Dimitri would do in this situation, and he wouldn't let his guard down for even a second, so I wouldn't either.

I trotted up the steps as quietly and cautiously as I could until I reached the front door. Even the door looked grand and expensive; it made me somewhat excited to look inside this mansion.

I raised my hand and took a deep breath when I realised my hand was shaking ever so slightly, before bringing my knuckles down on the door three times, hopefully knocking loud enough to get someone's attention.

I counted the seconds in my head, trying to get my breathing under control until I heard shuffling on the other side and the heavy door slowly swung open.

The soft glow of lights shone at me as my eyes met the figure before me. He looked no different to the first time I saw him, except now his perfectly tailored suit was a deep burgundy colour, with a dark scarf wrapped around his neck and tucked into the collar of his shirt. His bearded mouth lifted into a delighted smile when he saw who had wondered up to his front door in the middle of the night. He didn't look at all surprised to see me.

"Ah, Rosemarie! I've been waiting for you, I'm glad you came." His eyes glanced to the space around me. "And alone I see, smart girl. Come in, come in." He said while stepping aside and gesturing into the looming hallway behind him. His voice didn't sound tired at all, did this man never sleep?

Abe Mazur was an odd man, I had heard nothing but bad things about him since I had arrived here, and yet I seemed to hold some connection to him, he reminded me much of myself, which was absolutely ridiculous. He's a mobster, a murderer, absolutely nothing to with someone like me.

I cleared my throat before speaking. "You were expecting me? In the middle of the night?" I asked stupidly, I'd just stepped into his house and that was the first thing I said.

"Of course, you are a smart girl. I had an inkling you wouldn't be telling the Belikov's where you were going. They must have told you about my not-so-pristine reputation by now. So I must ask why you are here." His question was not at all accusatory, just curious; I didn't blame him for his curiosity. He was leading me through the house as he spoke, I kept a mental note of all possible exits we came across, doors and windows alike. I was right to think that the inside of this house would be just as grand as the exterior. The place was littered with expensive looking decor, as well as ancient looking paintings and chandeliers lining the hallway. I also couldn't help but notice that he answered my question with another question.

He led me into what could only be called a sitting room; a grand fireplace was lit in the centre of one of the walls, the heat radiating from it was soothing. He gestured for me to sit down on one of the plush sofas; I didn't sit until he sat down on the one opposite. I perched on the edge of the seat after silently assessing the room.

"I'm here because you asked me to come; at least I think you did." I responded, finally answering his question.

"You're right; I did ask you to come. But what I really mean is, if I asked anyone else to come to my home, for no reason what so ever, I'm sure they would not be quite as willing to come." His accented voice was neutral, in no way threatening; I was receiving a lot of mixed signals.

A door to my right opened then and I jumped up and faced whoever was about to enter, my hand gripping the stake in my pocket once more. An aging woman walked through the door carrying a tray with a teapot and teacups. The woman placed a teacup in front of me as well as Abe, and poured out a steaming brown liquid. She was human; her hair was short enough so that I could easily see her neck, no bite marks or scars.

"Thank you Martha, that will be all." Abe said to the woman, she nodded before leaving the room as silently as she came.

Abe picked up his teacup and took a sip as I sat down on the edge of the sofa once more. "It's Turkish tea. Have you ever been?" He asked while studying me. I picked up my cup only to give my hands something to do, I didn't take a sip.

"No, this is the first time I've been away from America." I stated.

"You are an awful long way from home, Little Girl." Once again his words could have been taken as a threat, if anything his tone of voice was teasing and sarcastic.

"I came here to get answers Old Man. A Moroi man and his Dhampir lackeys recently attacked me and a friend of mine." His eyes darkened and his face turned serious then, I saw anger in his eyes for the first time since I had met him. I could see then how people could be afraid of this man, his eyes held dark power. I continued anyway. "The man seemed to think I had something to do with you, he asked me where he could find you. He knew I was staying with the Belikov's, he seemed dangerous. So what I want to know is why some man thinks I would have anything to do with you, and why it's putting me and the people I love in danger." I said in a voice that left no room for arguments, I was in a no-bullshit kind of mood.

"Did you tell him you knew me? Did you tell him anything?" He questioned, he sounded like he was trying to keep his voice under control. Was he afraid?

"No, I _don't_ know you, that's exactly what I told him. And I wouldn't have known where to find you until yesterday. He left soon after he realised I wasn't going to tell him shit."

"Were you injured, you and your friend?" I doubt he really cared if we were injured.

"No." I answered; I didn't feel the need to explain. "Now tell me who that guy was and why he thought I had anything to do with you, I deserve answers. I won't put the Belikov's in danger."

"I admire your courage, but it would seem they are already in danger, as are you. The man who attacked you and your friend is called Desmond, he incredibly powerful and incredibly dangerous. I haven't heard from him in over 18 years, I thought perhaps he had forgotten about me, but clearly that's not the case." The thought of the Belikov's being in danger made my heart beat quicker and my palms become moist with sweat.

"But why? Why does he think I have anything to do with you? Who the hell are you?" I asked, I was losing my patience.

"I used to be part of Desmond's group, gang, whatever you choose to call it; I was his second in command. He didn't agree with the system the Moroi followed at places like The Court in America. We were in the States at the time, he had planned an attack on the Court, you might be familiar with the place. He had planned for Strigoi to ambush the grounds after we took down the wards. He was merciless, he didn't care who got killed; women, children, innocent people." He took a deep breath; I wasn't sure where he was going with this.

"I was sent to spy on the Court a few days before the attack, to get a feel for the security, make it easier for us to win. When I realised I couldn't go through with it, I couldn't let innocent people die for some mad-mans enjoyment. I warned the Court, I almost got Desmond captured, I betrayed him. The Court put me under special protection then, obviously I was in danger, and they owed me after I helped them out. I was provided with one of the top Guardians and sent away into hiding. My Guardian and I ended up falling in love. We thought we were safe, we thought we could start a new life, raise a family. When she fell pregnant we started receiving threats, we didn't stay in the same place for too long after that, but the threats kept coming. They even started a fire in one of our houses. We thought we could manage, and then one day, a few years later, they took things too far. Desmond's men had managed to get into our house; they were going to take our child, our daughter. That was the last straw. We decided it would be safer for my child and her mother to leave." His voice was monotone when he told the story, his eyes didn't stray from my face, and panic was rising in my chest as he reached the end. I knew where this story was going, but I wouldn't believe him until I heard him say the words.

"The last time I saw you, you were three years old. Janine sent me updates of your progress at the Academy for the first few years; I started receiving them less often, until they just stopped altogether. You have to understand that your mother and I only wanted what was best for you, I had to keep you safe."

I tried several times to swallow the lump that had formed in my throat. This was too much. I didn't know what I was expecting when I came here, but it sure as shit wasn't this. "Why should I believe you? Why should I believe a damn word you say? I don't know you!" I tried keeping my voice under control, but I was close to shouting by the end of my outburst.

"I never wanted you and your mother to leave, but you have to believe we were trying to do what was best for you. There's a chance you'd be dead by now if you stayed with me, if you lived life as my daughter. I may have been a good guy once but that doesn't make me a saint, a lot of people want me hurt, and they will do that any way they see fit, even if it means hurting my family, Desmond is a perfect example of that." The fact he could call me his family was ridiculous to me.

"You are _not_ my family. I wouldn't have even called my own mother family until a few months ago. If you're so intent on protecting me and keeping me out of this, why the hell did you ask me here?" My words were harsh but needed to be said. Janine Hathaway only started giving a shit about me after Spokane.

"Your mother must have known I spend a lot of time in Russia when I'm not in Turkey, when she told me you were coming here, and to Baia of all places, I had to see you. I never intended to make contact with you, but when those men ambushed you that night when you were on your own, I had to step in. I knew Desmond would be watching me but I didn't realise he'd put the pieces together so quick, I didn't think he'd still use you to get to me." I wanted to make some snarky comment about why he was following me, but I knew it wouldn't be taken well.

"So what does this mean? I can't put the Belikov's in danger, I won't." That family had been good to me; they'd been more of a family to me than my own flesh and blood had.

"I understand you don't want them to get hurt, but I believe that staying with them will be the safest thing for you and them. You have to lay low and act as if you don't know anything about Desmond. He won't purposely set out to harm the Belikov's but if he's trying to get to you or me and they get in the way, he won't hesitate to go through them." I understood what he was saying, but I hated the thought of my mere presence causing harm to the family.

"So you want me to carry on as if nothing's happened?" I asked, I'm not entirely sure why I was going along with this, he could be lying, but his words made sense, and he seemed to care that the Belikov's were safe too.

"I would have suggested you stay here with me, or some other safe place, but Desmond and his people will be watching both you and I very closely, they'll know something is amiss if you suddenly leave with no explanation, and will no doubt not-so-nicely question the Belikov's about your whereabouts. I suggest you stay here tonight, if you feel comfortable enough to do so, and I will personally see that you get home safely tomorrow. We will need to be careful how we contact each other from now on; I'll give you a new phone with only my number in it. But like I said, I suggest you lay low for now."

I glanced at the clock, it was 6am and I hadn't slept a wink. I knew I should have gone home, back to Dimitri. But there was a part of me that wanted to stay longer, I needed to know more, I had to know what was happening.

"Ok, I'll stay tonight, if you're sure that's ok?" I responded hesitantly.

"Of course, a guest bedroom has already been set up." I nodded and stood up when he did, he lead me upstairs, the hallway was beautifully decorated with at least 10 doors on either side of the walls leading who-knows-where.

I knew Abe had done the right thing once upon a time, but he also said he'd done some bad things in his time, and from what I'd heard, a lot of that still happens now. I didn't want to know what kind of things have gone on in this house.

He opened one of the doors on the left and held it open for me; he walked in first when he saw me hesitate, a knowing smile on his face. "You have been well-trained, I respect that." I ignored him.

"I hope this room will suit you well, you have your own bathroom there, and are of course welcome to use the facilities it holds. My own personal quarters are at the end of the hall, if you need anything, do not hesitate to ask." He said while gesturing around the room. It held a king-sized four-post bed made out of dark wood, probably mahogany or something equally as expensive. The armoire and bed side tables matched.

"Thank you, for letting me stay here." I said somewhat awkwardly, I still didn't exactly know how to act around him.

"You are welcome here any time. You are my daughter after all." I hadn't had time to process the fact that the man standing before me what supposedly my father. As I studied his features I could see similarities between us. The dark hair and tanned skin, I had always known I hadn't got that from my pale Scottish mother. I guess now I know who I inherited it from.

"Now if you have everything you need I'll leave you to sleep and I'll see you in the morning, I expect you have a lot more you wish to discuss before returning to the Belikovs." He was damn right about that.

He bid me goodnight and shut the door behind him. I felt lost in this grand room. I had a quick shower to ease the tense muscles in my back before cautiously laying in the soft bed. It felt odd being here; I still couldn't quite wrap my head around what I had learnt in a few short hours.

I had led my whole life accepting the fact that I would never know my father, and never get on with my mother. I had all but forgotten about my real family and made a family of my own, everyone back home was my family, Lissa, Eddie, even Christian. Dimitri and his family had accepted me with open arms, and in turn had become part of my family too.

My future had always been set in stone, I would protect Lissa and die doing so, but everything had changed so suddenly in the last few hours, things weren't looking so certain anymore.

 **There we have Chapter 17! I really hope you enjoyed it, even though there wasn't much Romitri action, I really enjoyed writing this chapter. Next chapter will most likely be in Rose's point of view again, I hope that's ok! Once again thank you to all you amazing readers who favourited, followed and reviewed this story, and for wishing me happy birthday too! Thanks again for reading; I really hope you enjoyed it!**


	18. Chapter 18

**Rose's Point of View.**

I woke the next morning with a start. My eyes were heavy and my mouth was dry, but other than that I was perfectly comfortable, it felt like I had slept on a cloud. My phone was on the bedside table where I had left it last night, it was 10AM already. While I was checking the time I couldn't help but see the missed calls and text's I had off Dimitri and even some off Vika. I didn't read the texts nor did I listen to the voicemails. He would only want answers if I replied to the texts or rang him back, and I felt like what I had learnt last night couldn't really be shared over the phone.

I reluctantly climbed out of the heavenly bed and slipped on the spare set of clothes I had packed in Dimitri's backpack, as well as brushing my teeth with the toothbrush I packed. I pulled on my combat boots and stepped into the hallway. I looked left and right and saw no one, Abe had said to meet him downstairs hadn't he?

I slowly headed downstairs, hoping I would bump into someone on my way down who could tell me where I should meet Abe, but the halls were deserted. When I reached the bottom of the grand winding staircase I smelt the unmistakable scent of bacon wafting to meet my nose, my stomach growled. I followed my nose until I was met with open doors leading to a huge kitchen, it had marble floor and black cabinets and worktops, and there was an island in the middle of the room, it was the size of a king sized bed. Facing away from me standing at the stove was who looked a lot like the woman that brought Abe and I tea last night, Martha I think her name was.

I felt a little awkward just standing here without her knowing I was there, so I cleared my throat. She turned quickly around, saying something in Russian. "Ah I am sorry Miss; I didn't hear you come in! Mr. Mazur will be down any moment, he has a bacon roll every morning." She spoke so fast I almost missed what she was saying completely, her accent was stronger than most I had heard since being here.

"No need to apologise, would you mind if I sit and wait for him? He said I should meet him downstairs but I didn't really know where to go." I said a little awkwardly while taking a few steps into the room.

Martha smiled warmly and pulled out a chair from under the island. "Of course, I am making breakfast for you too." She said matter-of-factly, like I should have known already.

I was about to thank her when Abe walked into the room, he said good morning to us both before Martha hurriedly carried on frying the bacon.

Abe pulled up the chair opposite me. "Did you sleep well, Rosemarie?" Martha set down a cup of coffee and a glass of orange juice in front of the both of us. Abe and I both thanked her, which I was pleased about. I knew Abe Mazur had a bad reputation but I couldn't stand the thought of him using this woman as his own personal slave.

"Very well, that bed was the comfiest I've ever felt, thank you." I said before taking a sip of orange juice.

Despite the fact that he must only have got around 5 hours sleep, Zmey looked as prim and pristine as ever, he had a brown tailored suit on today, with matching scarf. His goatee-like beard may as well have been superglued in place it was so neat.

We ate in silence for a few moments before I couldn't stand it any longer. "So when did you last talk to Janine?" I hadn't meant to call her by her actual name rather than Mum, it just came out. A frown creased his forehead for an instant before he recovered himself from the shock and confusion.

"I received a letter through the post a week or so ago from your mother, saying you were visiting Russia with your mentor from America. But before that I hadn't heard from her in around 10 years. Like I said last night, she sent me updates on your progress when I first left, when you first started at the academy, then they became less frequent until they stopped altogether." His voice held no emotion, as if he wasn't telling me something about himself, more like he was reciting a piece of information he had no interest at all in.

I couldn't help the sarcastic laugh that escaped my lips. "Well I'm not surprised. How could she update you when she didn't know anything herself? She stopped visiting me too after a year or so until recently, but she only came for business, and I went through a... rough patch." The first time she came to visit me was when Mason died.

We spoke for a while longer until our plates were taken and cleared away. "Well I suppose I should take you back to the Belikov's now, I know they will be worried about you." He said while standing up from his chair, despite his age and general look I could tell that ever move he made was careful and calculated.

"I suppose you're right. I didn't tell Dimitri where I was going, and I've been avoiding his calls." I said while also standing up and heading towards the door.

"Will you tell him what you have learnt since coming here?" He asked, I tried to work out what he was asking me from his tone of voice, if he'd said it differently, it could have been taken as a warning.

"Do you want me to tell him?" I asked simply, studying his eyes for any change of attitude, I wasn't afraid of this man but that didn't mean I wouldn't be cautious, and there was no point in playing games, I may as well get straight to the point.

"Not particularly, the fewer people that know my business, the better. But I get the feeling that he will be a part of this just as much as you are." His eyes finally left mine as he walked us up the stairs once more.

"You're right, and I suppose he has the right to know why I'm putting his family in danger. What if he kicks me out?" I didn't want to ask the question, but I knew it was a possibility.

"I highly doubt that he will, but we will figure something out if the situation calls for it, I shan't have my daughter living on the streets." I went into my room and collected the backpack which was waiting for me on the bed; I hadn't really unpacked so it took almost no time at all. I joined Abe at the top of the stairs and we walked down together and out the front door.

At the bottom of the steps was a Dhampir dressed in a black suit waiting by a sleek black car. When we reached the car he opened the back door for Abe and I to get in. The Guardian got in the driver's seat.

"Rosemarie, this is Pavel, my head guardian and trusted friend. You've met before but haven't been properly introduced." He said while gesturing to the guardian who had started to drive down the long stretch of road that leads up to the house.

"Pleasure to meet you officially, Rosemarie." Pavel said while glancing at me in the rear-view mirror.

"You too." I said while returning his smile ever so slightly.

We spoke about unimportant and uninteresting things for the duration of the journey, which lasted just under an hour; Pavel was driving rather fast down the country lanes, though. I tried my best to concentrate on the conversations I was inevitably a part of, but my mind was elsewhere. My mind was with Dimitri.

We finally pulled up onto the road I recognised and we stopped outside the Belikov's house a few seconds later. I noticed the curtain in the living room move ever so slightly. I was being watched. Pavel got out of the car and came round and opened my door for me, Abe remained seated.

"Thank you for letting me stay with you, Old Man." I said while picking my backpack up and slipping it over my shoulder, still sitting.

"You are welcome any time, Little Girl." He pulled something out of his pocket. "This is a phone with my only my number in it, use it to contact me any time, any place. Look after yourself, no doubt I'll be seeing you soon." He said while putting the phone into my hand, which I then put in the bag before getting up and out of the car. I thanked Pavel as I stepped out and watched as they drove away. I took a deep breath, mentally preparing myself for what was about to come when I entered the house. Reluctantly, I turned around and headed up the steps onto the porch, before twisting the door knob and stepping inside the familiar home, I dropped my bag as soon as I was in the door. I didn't bother knocking; I knew he knew I was here.

I looked up and saw Dimitri standing by the stairs, his back was tense and his hands were clenched into fists by his side. His hair was loose and stubble was starting to grow on his cheeks and chin. His bottomless eyes made my heart break into two there and then. I didn't realise the true extent of the pain I would put him through until I saw the look in his eyes. The pain in them made me tare my gaze away from him and look at the ground. I couldn't bear to look at him.

I felt his eyes travel over my body, not in a sexual way, no. He was assessing me, just as I had done to him when I entered the house. His eyes reached my face once more and I couldn't help but look him in the eye again, he was angry, furious even. I didn't blame him, I did my best to mentally prepare myself for the lecture he was about to spit out at me.

I blinked and he was standing right in front of me, our chests nearly touching, I couldn't help but flinch at the speed he had managed to cross the room in.

"Dimitri..." I said, I had no idea what to say, there was nothing _to_ say right now, but I couldn't tolerate the silence for another second.

I was expecting him to lash out, maybe slam his fist against the wall beside my head, I thought he would shout at me, scream in my face, I would have deserved it all. What I was not expecting, was for him to kiss me.

His lips were firmly pressed against mine as his fingers tangled into my hair, I gasped, and he caught me off guard. He took the chance to slip his tongue into my mouth. I hesitated for just a second before my arms wrapped around his neck and my body melted against his.

He walked me backwards until my back hit the wall; I jumped up and wrapped my legs around his waist.

He caught my lower lip between his teeth and I couldn't help the moan that escaped my lips. I had been without him for a night and I had missed him incredibly.

His hips brushed against mine and it made me annoyed at the fact that we weren't locked up in his bedroom, instead we were in the hallway for all to see. That made me stop, where were the rest of the Belikov's?

I pulled my lips away from his and leant back against the wall slightly. He gently untangled my legs from around his waist and took a step back, the distance between us made me shiver.

"Where is everyone?" I asked. Stupid Rose, I knew that was the wrong thing to say as soona s the words left my mouth.

He laughed an emotionless laugh. "Where is everyone? Really Rose? _You_ disappear in the middle of the night and _you_ want to know where _everyone else_ is?"

"I'm sorry, Comrade, I needed-"He didn't let me finish.

"I know, Rose. I got the note. You needed answers. You could have at least told me where you were going, I had no idea, Rose."

"I know, and I'm sorry-" He cut me off once again.

"So tell me, did you get the answers you were looking for, where did you even go?" I knew he didn't really want to know right now.

"Yes, and I went to Abe Mazur's house." He had every right to be angry with me, but Dimitri rarely ever raised his voice at me.

"Why on earth would you go there Rose? Did you not listen to what people have told you about him? He's dangerous, a mobster. Do you have a death wish?!"

I opened my mouth to speak once more, to explain myself, when the front door opened beside me and Olena, Vika and Paul came into the house. They all rushed towards me and embraced me tightly when they saw me. Efficiently cutting off whatever excuse I was about to say to him.

"Oh Roza, we've been so worried about you? Where did you go?" Olena wiped a tear from her eye, making the guilt inside my stomach grow even bigger, if possible.

I was hurried into the living room before I could utter so much as a word, where Yeva was sitting in an armchair with baby Zoya in her lap. She smiled at me kindly, there was a knowing look in her eye, and I smiled back at her and mouthed a thank you to which she nodded.

Olena gently pushed me onto the sofa where she sat beside me, holding my hand. Vika sat on a chair opposite, facing me. Dimitri stood to the side with his fists clenched and his arms crossed over his chest. He looked dangerous and hot as hell.

When they were all looking at me expectantly, I began. "On my birthday, Abe Mazur sent me a card with an address on it, last night I went there." Olena looked absolutely horrified, Vika looked shocked and Dimitri looked like he wanted to kill something. Yeva was just smiling at me; it almost looked like she was proud.

They asked why I would go there, and I continued to explain. "It became apparent that Zmey knew he somehow, he had practically said so himself when I met him properly. And then the Moroi who attacked Vika and I knew that I was linked to him somehow. And it's true, I am linked to him, I've known him all my life and I just didn't know it. Ibrahim Mazur is my father."

 **There we have Chapter 18! I am so so so sorry you've had to wait this long! I am hoping to write some more tomorrow but not sure when I'll be able to post the next chapter as I'm going to Dublin on Sunday for a few days! The next chapter will most likely be in Dimitri's point of view, so hopefully that will be good! I really hope you've enjoyed this chapter, and sorry it's not quite as long. But I really hope you've enjoyed it, please let me know what you think! Thanks again to every one of you who has followed, favourited, and reviewed the story, I appreciate it so much! Thanks again, I hope you enjoyed!**


	19. Chapter 19

**Dimitri's Point of View.**

"Ibrahim Mazur is my father." What did she just say?

I had spent the entire morning pacing up and down the hallway in front of the front door, waiting for her to walk through it. I didn't even know when she was meant to be coming home, she hadn't given me a time frame, but I couldn't just sit around doing nothing. I had spent the whole previous day driving around town, everywhere I could think of to look for her, but to no avail.

I knew it was a possibility that Rose might be gone a week, maybe even a month, how was I to know? But I hadn't been able to sleep for even a second knowing she could be anywhere, she could have been hurt or even worse and I wouldn't have known.

I had spent the night without her in my room, with the lights off and my door closed so at least Mama thought I was sleeping, when in fact I was sat in front of the bedroom window, facing the street in front of the house, waiting for her to come home. I'd wait all year if that was what it takes to know she is safe.

I spent the entire next day in the front hall, pacing. Listening for any sign of movement outside the front door. Karo and Sonja had both gone to work, Mama and Vika had taken Paul to the park and Babushka was in the living room with the baby, I heard her cackle every so often, it always seemed to be when I was most frustrated, she was enjoying this. But in all honesty I was grateful for the peace and quiet that the near-empty house graced me with.

I kept trying to ignore the fact that my own Grandmother knew where Roza was and wouldn't tell me, I tried not to think of it as if she enjoyed watching me suffer. I did know one thing for sure, that there was always a reason for Babushka to do something, I had grown up around the woman and knew to always follow her advice, and never brush off anything she says. I wanted to believe her when she told me that Roza was safe, but I just couldn't.

I was stopped in the middle of my train-wreck of thoughts when I heard a car pull up outside the house, I didn't need to see it to know that it didn't belong to anyone that lived in this part of town, and no one around here could afford a car that made that kind of purr.

I waited, minutes went by and nothing happened, until I heard a car door slam shut and I was about to punch a hole in the wall when the doorknob twisted, I faced the door.

She stepped inside the house and dropped the bag- my backpack. She looked up into my eyes and it felt like I hadn't seen her in a hundred years. She looked so different and so similar all at the same time.

She seemed smaller, if that was possible. Almost like she had shrunk in on herself. I could see the guilt in her eyes as clear as day, but there was something else there too, something guarded that I couldn't quite comprehend. She looked into my eyes for just a second before she dropped her gaze to the floor, she couldn't even look at me.

I raked my eyes over her body, she didn't seem to be injured, and that was a relief at least.

It was strange, I knew what Rose Hathaway was capable of, she hadn't even graduated yet and already she was an experienced killer. But seeing her standing there, she looked almost fragile, like she had been worn-down. I couldn't stand the distance anymore; I crossed the room in one stride and was standing in front of her in a blink of an eye.

She said my name, the word had barely left her lips when I took hold of her and kissed her. I couldn't be apart from her for any longer. I felt her hesitate for a fraction of a second before she kissed me back. It felt like a lifetime had passed since I last tasted her, too long. Her moan made my heart beat faster, I needed her.

It was as if we both noticed where we were, we realised the situation, and that I still didn't have an explanation for where she went. She pulled her lips away from mine and leant back against the wall. He beautiful lips were red and swollen, she was breathing heavily. I took a step back, I needed to breathe.

I snapped when she asked where my family were. She had been gone for almost two days and she was asking where my family was? She told me she went to Abe Mazur's house and I almost lost it there and then. She had been warned time and time again about that man, and what does she do? She goes to his _house_.

I had never thought she would do something so reckless, so God-damn naive.

It was probably for the best that Mama, Vika and Paul walked in when they did, I was finding it hard to control my words.

Mama practically dragged Roza into the living room; I could do nothing but follow. I couldn't help but notice the look Yeva and Roza shared when they saw each other, I also noticed the discrete _thank you_ Roza mouthed to Babushka, I clenched my fists at my side, and I was becoming impatient.

Roza explained that Zmey had sent her a card on her birthday with his address on it, and that that's where she went last night. How had I not seen that card? My confusion only grew when Rose explained that she had known Zmey all her life, she just didn't know. It clicked then, and that's when she explained Abe Mazur was her father.

I felt my heartbeat stop, and then it started beating even harder, if possible. How could that be possible? I was positive that Mazur was Turkish, how would a man like Abe Mazur ever consort with the guarded Janine Hathaway?

Vika voiced my question before I could. "How the hell is he your Dad?" She practically yelled. Mama sent her a scolding look for using a _curse_ word.

"Believe me, I wondered the same thing. He actually seems like an alright guy." That was a shock in itself; I couldn't help my eyebrows rising in surprise ever so slightly. She then went on to explain how her parents met and that Janine used to send him updates of Roza's progress at the Academy when she was little, but they stopped when her Mother stopped visiting her. She also went on to explain about the Moroi who threatened her and Vika, Desmond. He seemed very powerful and very dangerous, and I hated that he was a threat to Roza.

I kept my mouth shut, I feared if I spoke to ask a question, I would end up saying the wrong thing. I was grateful Mama asked one of my burning questions.

"So what happens now, Roza?" She asked, completely innocent, Mama was nothing but worried about Rose.

"Abe said he would have offered for me to stay with him, to help keep the rest of you safe. But we agreed that shouldn't happen unless it's absolutely necessary, because then Desmond would just go through you guys to get to me, and we agreed we can't let that happen." The thought of Roza leaving to live with that man made my stomach turn. I was amazed at how much she cared for my family, the lengths she was willing to go to in order to keep them safe.

"But he also told me it was unlikely that Desmond is going to give up now he knows Abe is close, and now he knows where I'm living. So he told me to lay low and be alert. He's given me a way to contact him if I need to as well." She continued.

I didn't like this at all. I hated the thought of Rose being in danger, not knowing if and when something is going to happen set me on edge, and how can she be so calm?

I was going to have to talk to her alone about this too, I didn't want to have to worry the family, I knew Rose was hoping the same.

Karolina and Sonja soon came home, both relieved to have Rose home. It also meant she had to explain the whole situation again, she claimed she didn't mind, and she came off as calm and collected as possible. But I could see she was worn out, she had bags under her eyes and I could swear some of the light in her eyes had gone out.

I didn't let Rose out of my sight for the rest of the day, she didn't show it obviously but I could tell Mama was feeling the same.

I noticed the knowing looks Yeva and Roza were sharing, I even walked in to them having a hushed discussion, Babushka looked all-knowing and confident, but Roza looked concerned and confused if nothing else. I was going to go crazy if I didn't get some answers.

Nightfall soon came and I was growing more and more anxious to speak to Rose alone, I was grateful when she finally excused herself and said she was going to take a shower before bed, I said I'd see her up there soon.

Soon after I bid my family goodnight and climbed the stairs. The hallway was cloudy with the steam from Roza's shower, and I could faintly smell the strawberry scent of her shampoo.

I wasn't sure where I stood with Rose, and so I hesitated before I reached my bedroom door where I knew Rose would be, and I knocked before I entered.

Rose had her back towards me when I entered; she was fiddling with something on her bedside table, but stopped as soon as she heard me enter the room. She was dressed in one of my shirts; it was so baggy for her it almost brushed her knees. Her damp curls were cascading down her back; she turned to face me and sat on the bed.

I slipped my shoes off and perched on the other side of the bed, facing her. I had so much I wanted to say, and somehow couldn't bring myself to say any of it.

"Go on, I can tell you have lots to say." She said, her beautiful brown eyes gazing into my own.

"Why didn't you tell me where you were going? Do you have any idea how worried I was?" That wasn't supposed to be the first thing I asked her, but it seemed to be the only thing I could bring myself to say in the moment.

She didn't reply straight away, she hesitated for a moment, simply looking into my eyes, as if she was looking for something there. She pushed her damp hair behind her ear and took a deep breath, her hand was trembling. "I didn't want to drag you into this mess any more than you had to be. I've already caused you and your family so much trouble; I honestly came back here prepared for you to kick me out. I'll understand if you do."

Is that really what she thought? She thought I would just kick her out onto the streets at a time like this? I couldn't stand the distance between us anymore, I felt like she was miles away when she was only on the other side of the bed.

I took her hand into my own and pulled her to me, lying down at the same time so she ended up beside me, tucked safely between my arm and my body. It felt good to hold her again, almost like I could breathe again. I placed a kiss to her temple.

"You really think I would just kick you out Rose? I don't care what happens; I will always be there for you. I would do anything for you. We're in this together, whether you like it or not." She tilted her head up so she was looking at me again, she was biting her lip, and she only did that when she was worried or thinking about something too hard. What more could I say to make her believe me?

"I love you." She said, as if it was the simplest thing in the world. As if her life wasn't in danger with every breath she took. As if we were just a normal guy and girl.

And I said it back, because I did love her, and in that moment I just wanted to make her worries slip away. I knew I couldn't fix this for her, not forever. But in that moment, if I could just give her some freedom from her thoughts, then it would be enough for now. And so I kissed her, I kissed her because I wanted to, and because I knew she needed to let herself be taken care of. And for just a moment I let myself believe that everything might be ok, that maybe we didn't have to be so worried about this Desmond guy, I shouldn't have let myself think like that, when in the end, it will be anything but ok.

 **There we have Chapter 19! I am so sorry for the delay, but I have been away and didn't have my laptop so I couldn't write! I'm sorry if this chapter wasn't as exciting as you had hoped, but I really just wanted to get Dimitri's point of view in there again, things are just picking up folks! What was Rose fiddling with when Dimitri walked in, could that have anything to do with the drama that is to come? Wait and see! Thank you all so much for all your support and for reviewing, following and favouriting my story, I appreciate every one and love reading all the reviews! Thanks again, I really hope you enjoy the chapter, let me know what you think!**


	20. Chapter 20

**Rose's Point of View.**

It felt good to be back, with Dimitri and his family and their cosy house. It felt good to be back home. It was strange that in such a short amount of time I had been in Baia it had already become a home to me. I felt happier and more at ease here than I ever had at St. Vlads. Although I missed Lissa terribly, we still spoke almost every day, which probably helped with the homesickness, and the fact that I had Dimitri here with me.

Being so comfortable here also made it so difficult to be here. My mere presence was putting the whole Belikov family and their perfect home in danger, and I couldn't get that thought out of my mind no matter how hard I tried.

I knew last night Dimitri was trying his best to take my mind off my troubles, and for just a fraction of a second it worked, but of course it didn't last.

Last night, when I excused myself and headed upstairs for my shower, I went into Dimitri's bedroom to get my towel and pyjamas, everything in his room was as it should be.

When I returned to his room after my shower, hair still dripping wet, everything was still untouched and perfectly placed, except something was there that was not there before.

It took me a moment or two to notice it; it wasn't until I sat down on the bed that I saw the folded piece of paper placed in the centre of my pillow.

I know I had no reason to worry just yet, it could have been anything, but the sight of it made my stomach tighten and my heart beat slightly faster.

I swallowed the feeling of unease that was rising in my gut and slowly picked up the piece of paper. I noticed the shaking of my hand but decided to blame it on the cold. I unfolded the piece of paper and took in the impeccably neat hand writing.

 _Rosemarie,_

 _What a lovely life you have been greeted with here. It would be an awful shame if anything were to happen to this lovely house and lovely family that had so kindly let you stay with them. Imagine the guilt you would feel if anything were to happen to them._

 _Just something to keep in mind._

There was no name at the end of the letter, but I didn't need to guess who it was from. Desmond really wasn't wasting any time.

All oxygen seemed to vanish through the room; it felt like I was suffocating.

I should have heard Dimitri coming up the creaking stairs, but it was hard to hear anything when my heart was beating so rapidly in my ears. I didn't hear Dimitri until the doorknob twisted and he walked in, I barely had enough time to hide the note in the drawer of my bedside table. Dimitri must have caught a glimpse of the action but didn't say anything, bless him and his polite ways.

He had questions and I let him ask them, and I answered. Once we finished talking he did his best to take my mind off everything, little did he know that a whole new world of worries had just crash landed on my shoulders.

I felt awful for not telling him, I really did. There was no doubt in my mind that the letter was a threat, Desmond was using Dimitri and his family to get to me. He hadn't even said what he wanted from me. Telling him would only worry him more, I hated that he worried about me; I didn't want to make that worse.

The fact that him and whoever works for him could get in and out of our bedroom in less than 10 minutes without making a sound and without moving a single item in Dimitri's room alarmed me. The window wasn't broken into and I doubt it would even be unlocked.

If Desmond and his people could get in and out of here to leave a letter on my pillow without anyone noticing, I hated to think of what else they could do so easily.

The following weeks went by much like they had before. No one spoke much about what happened, and we carried on our lives as if nothing had happened. Dimitri and I would go running each morning before running errands for Olena. We would play with Paul and Zoya. Yeva even taught me how to knit. She knew there was more happening; I caught the worried glances she would give me when Dimitri wasn't looking. I didn't know how much she knew, but she knew something wasn't right.

And she _was_ right, I don't know how she knew, when no one else had picked up on the fact that I hadn't slept in weeks.

I pretended to fall asleep before Dimitri did, and I would pretend to still be asleep when he woke up before me. I didn't blame him for not noticing, there was no way he could know.

The thing that alarmed me most, the thing that kept me awake at night, was that Desmond was still finding a way to get into the house and leave me threats. Every few days there would be a letter nearly folded, left somewhere completely out in the obvious, but somehow only I could find it.

One was left on the kitchen fridge, held up by a magnet that Paul had decorated at school when he was younger. One was placed in front of the mirror in the bathroom. They were all perfectly written and spoke of similar things as the first. But they were all placed in such obvious places; I knew I was being watched. It would be so easy for Olena to go to the fridge before me and see the letter, or for Vika or someone else to see the other one in the bathroom but no one ever did.

Today, Dimitri and Olena had gone to Mark and Oksana's to help them chop some wood for the winter months- Dimitri would be chopping the wood, not Olena, I would have gone but I stayed with Yeva and Zoya instead. And as much as I hated to say it, I would be glad to let the whole _perfectly fine_ act fade for a while being away from Dimitri. He had barely let me out of his sight in the last few weeks, I couldn't blame him but I was becoming weary.

The house was beautifully decorated as Christmas was fast approaching. The Christmas tree was in the corner of the living room, tinsel and lights lighting up the room.

I had been cuddling Zoya for some time know, the room was silent other than the repetitive clicking of Yeva's knitting needles tapping together, the sound was strangely comforting. I placed the baby down in the crib on the other side of the room. I went back to where I was sitting to get my phone; I was about to text Dimitri to see how he was getting on when the crash came.

The window less than a metre beside me shattered, I covered my face with my arm as quickly as I could, but not fast enough. The stinging and dampness on my cheek and forehead told me I'd been cut.

My first thoughts were of Zoya and Yeva. Both were fine after I gave them a visual once over, Yeva was just slowly scooping the waking Zoya up into her arms. I ran to the window, stake in hand. Nothing, no one was out there. I couldn't help but curse out loud, Yeva didn't even reprimand me.

There was nothing on the floor that could have smashed the window, no rock or brick like I'd expected, nothing but broken glass littered the floor.

That's when the breeze came. It wasn't a strong breeze, but enough to leave a chill in the air and make my hair blow over my shoulders. I looked to the window once more, still nothing there. Nothing except a folded piece of paper blowing through the jagged hole in the window.

I knew it couldn't have been the wind blowing it in, it was moving too slowly, swaying like a feather rather than slicing through the air like a piece of paper should. I held out my hand, I knew the letter was for me. It landed right in the centre of my hand. At least the air-using Moroi was polite enough to avoid giving me a paper cut.

I glanced Yeva's way, she was watching me, encouraging me to open it. It was written in the same neat handwriting as the others, and addressed to me once again.

 _Rosemarie,_

 _27_ _th_ _December, midnight. 12 Komsk Road. I'm sure I don't need to mention what will happen if you fail to turn up, or bring someone with you._

 _I look forward to seeing you again._

That date was a week away, one whole week. I had no idea what this man wanted from me, but I knew it wouldn't be to give me a late Christmas present. How nice of him to wait until after Christmas to put his plans into action, he must have thought he was doing me a kindness. What a fucking joke.

Yeva slowly approached me, Zoya tucked in her arm, as if the slightest of movement would spook me, maybe it would. I wasn't looking at the letter anymore; I didn't need to read it twice. The message may as well have been branded onto my eyeballs.

The frail older woman slowly took the letter out of my hand and read it. Zoya was such a good little girl, she didn't cry despite the smashed window only moments ago; she just gazed up at me with her beautiful brown eyes, her uncle's eyes.

I heard the car pull up into the driveway only seconds before Yeva did, she folded the letter and put it into the pocket of my jumper. I was having a hard time moving my arms.

She lifted her calloused hand and brushed away a tear I didn't realise had fallen, and despite being shorter than me, she lifted my chin. I knew what she was telling me. I was strong, I could do this.

Olena and Dimitri walked through the front door then, and I knew in that instant I had to tell them everything, especially Dimitri. He deserved to know and lying to him was tearing me apart with guilt. I had always been an expert liar, always able to hide behind something, but with Dimitri it was different, lying to him was slowly killing me.

They walked into the ruined room and stopped in their tracks. Taking in the shattered glass on the floor and the smashed window, and me, I must have looked an absolute mess. I could feel the drying blood itching the side of my face. I was grateful it was me that was cut rather than Yeva or Zoya. I deserved the pain, I embraced it.

Dimitri's eyes searched the room in a heartbeat; he strode over to me in only a couple of steps. Before I could take a breath he was crouching in front of me, his hard but soft hands cupped my face, his eyes searching my features, landing on the cut that must be on my forehead.

"What happened? Are you all ok?" He asked frantically, looking between myself and Yeva. I felt the tears forming at what I was about to do, I was going to tell them everything.

I took a step back from him, his hands falling from my face. The glass crunching under my feet making the reality of the situation all the more obvious.

"Dimitri, I need to-" I started, but was interrupted.

"A bird flew into the window Dimka, must have hit it pretty hard, and didn't see what sort it was, it was in and out in an instant!" Yeva explained. She was looking between her daughter and grandson as she told her story, purposely not looking at me as I stared at her incredulously.

Dimitri stepped closer to me again, shock and sympathy lacing his features. His hand brushed my forehead and came back red. His eyes were silently asking the question of how I got cut. Yeva had an answer for that too.

"Your Roza was standing closer to the window, Dimka." He was still gazing at me; I snapped myself out of my trance and plastered a smile on my face.

"It's nothing really, doesn't even hurt." I said while taking his hand into my own. I wasn't sure why Yeva was lying to him when I was just about to tell him everything. But I knew one thing; I had to trust that she was doing it for the right reasons.

Olena approached me then, brushing Dimitri's hands off me. "Nonsense Roza, let me have a look." She took my face into her hands and examined my forehead. "I don't think you'll need stitches but I will clean it and cover it."

"Really, you don't have to do that, I'm sure it'll be fine." I tried telling her but she simply ignored me and dragged me into the kitchen and sat me down at the table. Dimitri followed and sat behind me, taking my hand into his own. I smiled up at him; he was so unconditionally loving and caring. I knew I had to tell him the truth, and I told myself I would when the time was right. Maybe the best time to tell him would be when all of this had blown over.

Olena soon returned and cleaned up my forehead, I had a cut starting from the centre of my forehead and finishing just above my right eyebrow. She cleaned it with something that made it sting and put a small bandage over it. Murmuring about how I always managed to get hurt as she worked.

Dimitri spent the rest of the afternoon boarding up the smashed window in the living room; he refused my help every time I offered.

I took the time to hide the letter with all the others in my bedside table. I pictured myself locking them all up in a little box in my mind, a box that would stay locked until the day came where I'd have to go and see that man, whatever it is he wanted from me, I was well and truly ready to find out.

I was just changing my top when the bedroom door opened and my tall, handsome Russian walked in. I threw the top straight in the washing pile; it had specks of blood and tiny shards of glass on it that I couldn't get off.

Dimitri stopped when he saw me, standing in just my bra and jeans, I looked away from his heated gaze. "You are so beautiful, it hurts me."

He walked over and wrapped his strong arms around my bare waist; I trailed my hands up his arms until they circled around his neck. "You're not too bad either, I guess."

He smiled and brought his face closer to my own, I slipped my eyes shut and felt him place his lips over the bandage on my forehead, before his lips reached my own and he kissed me.

Maybe it was better if he didn't know just yet about going to Desmond next week, I knew for a fact he would only worry, and there's no way he'd let me go alone. He would find a way to come with me, and that would only end badly for his family.

I was doing it to keep them safe, I would go to this unknown address in the middle of the night, and I would meet my fate, whatever it may be. But for now, I would spend the evening with the man I loved and his family, and then Christmas would come and I would embrace the day as it should be embraced. For just a day I would enjoy my company, I would eat Olena's lovely food, I would give presents to the ones I love and I would pretend that everything was perfect, because for just a day maybe it would be.

And then I would do what I had to do for this family, because they didn't deserve the trouble of knowing that I would fight for them, they didn't need to worry about me when I had brought this all upon myself. I caused this, and so I would fix it.

 **There we have Chapter 20! Thank you so much to everyone who has reviewed, followed and favourited the story, you have no idea how much it means to me! I understand that this story is set in a different time to the original, as Christmas was at a different point in the story, but I was hoping we could kind of look past that as it kind of worked with the story at the time, so I'm sorry if that confused people and if you didn't like that, but I can't do anything but stick with it now!**

 **I have a question to those of you who actually read this little note at the bottom, if you'd be so kind as to help ease my curiosity. Do your family and friends know that you read/write fanfiction? My sister caught me reading it once a long time ago and kind of judged me for it, and since then I've never mentioned it to anyone, and I only write it when no one is around so they don't ask what I'm doing, I just wondered how everyone else fits it into their lives and if they're open about it. It's just always been one of those things I keep to myself for some reason, not that I'm ashamed!**

 **Anyway, thank you so much again to everyone who has reviewed, followed and favourited, I hope you enjoy the chapter, please let me know what you think!**


	21. Chapter 21

**Warning: Slightest 'M' scene towards the end of this chapter, nothing too graphic but thought I'd better warn you. Enjoy!**

 **Rose's Point of View.**

Christmas arrived sooner that I thought possible. Time goes by quickly when your mind doesn't stray from some crazy Moroi who wants nothing more than to abduct you and do God knows what to you, and also when you're walking right into his grasp in fewer than two days.

The day went as wonderfully as I expected, present giving and receiving was always my favourite part of Christmas, up until I tried Olena's food, then that was my favourite part. Despite the worries that were on the minds of the family, Christmas day was surprisingly peaceful. It never failed to amaze me how close this family was, and how they manage to knit together and support each other in everything they do. I had never had anything like that before with a family, so there was no way in hell that I would ruin this for them.

I watched the sun slowly begin to set as I was tucked up against Dimitri's side on the sofa, well and truly stuffed full of Olena's incredible food. We were watching Paul play with his new toys when Dimitri brushed his lips against my ear and whispered "Do you want to go somewhere?" I looked up into his eyes and saw a mischievous glint in them that I had only seen a handful of times before. I couldn't help the smile that crept onto my face.

I looked around the room at the family; the girls were watching whatever Christmas film that was playing on the small TV, Yeva was napping in her armchair. "Where?" I whispered to him, not wanting to disturb the family.

"You'll see when we get there." He said before standing and pulling me up with him. Olena gave her son a questioning look but didn't pry when all he said was that we'd be back later.

Dimitri handed me my coat and wrapped my scarf around my neck after I'd pulled my combat boots on. He picked up a backpack and held open the front door for me, ever the gentleman.

"What's in the bag?" I asked as he took my hand into his own while we walked down the driveway and turned right down the street.

"Wait and see." He said as he placed a kiss to the back of my hand after bringing it up to meet his lips.

I pouted but kept walking where Dimitri was guiding us. We walked down the street until we walked down a quiet country lane that I hadn't even known was there before.

There were no streetlights down the tree-lined lane but we didn't need them with our heightened senses, the low shine coming off the moon was enough.

We finally reached the end of the path, it lead to a clearing in the tree's, opening into what once was a beautiful lake, but what is now completely covered in ice.

There was not a sound but that of our shallow breathing and an owl hooting somewhere in the distance. "I've wanted to bring you here for some time, but I had to wait until the ice was thick enough." I was about to ask what it had to be thick enough for, when he shrugged off the backpack and opened it to reveal two pairs of ice skates.

The thought of seeing Dimitri ice skating made my knees weak, he was as graceful as a beautiful God when he was walking on the dull earth, I couldn't even conjure a thought of how he would look gliding across the frozen lake.

A shit-eating grin spread across my face as he handed me the smaller of the two pairs. I pulled off my combat boots and pulled on the ice skates, they fit perfectly. I stood up and saw Dimitri already heading over to the ice, he stepped on to the ice and turned to face me, a smile graced his beautiful face and I could do nothing more than stare at him as he gazed back at me.

"Are you coming or are you just going to stand there?" He asked with a smirk.

"Cocky bastard." I murmured under my breath as I approached him.

I slowly skated towards where he was standing with his arms outstretched towards me; I slid straight into his arms. "I heard that." He said as he lowered his lips to mine.

"You were supposed to hear it." I said with a gasp after his lips left mine. He smiled as he began to glide backwards, pulling me with him.

"Have you been ice skating before, Roza?" He asked as the moon shone in his eyes.

"Years and years ago with Lissa." I told him as he turned so he was gliding across the ice right next to me. I slid my hand into his, not because I needed to steady myself, but simply because I wanted to.

We were skating for an immeasurable amount of time, I was lost in the world with the breeze flowing through my hair and the hand of the man I love gripping my own. I felt a sense of freedom that I hadn't experienced in a long time, maybe even since Lissa and I had been on the run.

I couldn't stop my mind from straying to thoughts of what kind of future Dimitri and I might have. Those thoughts were brutally disrupted when I remembered where I was going in two days, and that there was a high chance I wouldn't be coming back.

I knew I was badass and everything, but I couldn't think of a way in which this situation resulted in me walking away by myself, I hated to admit it but I knew I would need someone there, and there was no way I was dragging anyone else into this mess when the lives of the Belikov's are on the line.

I felt Dimitri's gaze on my face and turned to see a thoughtful expression on his face.

"What are you thinking about?" I asked while slowing our speed until we stopped completely.

"You. Just how incredible you are and how lucky I am to have you in my life. I don't deserve you, Roza." He said while caressing my cheek and brushing a loose strand of hair behind my ear, I leaned into his touch.

"You're right, you don't deserve me, you deserve so much better. And I am so sorry Dimitri, for everything I have put you and your family through, but I promise you I will do everything in my power to make it stop. I just need you to remember that I love you, I've always loved you and I don't think I could ever stop." I'm not even sure how I managed to get my voice to work with the lump that had formed in my throat. I didn't want to say too much, or he'd suspect that something was wrong, but I had to tell him how I was feeling, he had to know.

His gaze was so intense, I had to kiss him to make sure he didn't say anything, or else I wasn't sure I could leave him. I slid my arms around his neck and pulled his lips down to mine. His hands set my skin on fire even through my thick coat. We were pressed so firmly together I wasn't sure where he ended and where I began.

His teeth tugged at my bottom lip, practically begging for entrance which I gladly gave him. I was lost in the feel of him, and I loved every moment of it.

Dimitri pulled back ever so slightly and his breath warmed my cold face. "I love you, Roza." He stated simply.

We later walked home hand in hand. By the time we reached the front door I knew I was making the right decision. I knew Dimitri would be hurt, I knew I'd be betraying him. But I also decided it was worth it if I knew he was safe.

It turned out we had been out for hours, and it was now almost midnight when we walked into the quiet house, the Belikov's had gone to bed.

Dimitri's strong but graceful hands strayed down to my waist and my hips as we ascended the stairs; they were resting on my bare stomach underneath my shirt by the time we reached his bedroom.

I pulled my top over my head and twisted in his arms to face him. I trailed my hands down his chest until they reached the hem of his shirt, I quickly tugged it up and over his head before my lips connected with his neck and he growled appreciatively.

His hands were roaming my body until he ever so slowly reached the button and zipper to my jeans. "Stop teasing." I said, as my hands trailed down his rock hard abs once more until I reached his jeans.

Dimitri sat down on the edge of the bed after removing the last of our clothing, I climbed right onto his lap, my thighs either side of him. He kissed me so passionately as I raised myself up and slowly lowered myself down so we were connected in a way that I had been craving since our kiss on the ice.

It was safe to say I had no trouble falling asleep that night.

The next two days passed in a blur. I hated that I had to leave Dimitri in the middle of the night again, but I was just hoping and praying he would understand, when he knew I was doing it for him and for his family.

I read through each and every one of the threat letters I had been sent while Dimitri was in the shower, they added fuel to the fire filled rage that was burning in my mind. I knew it was unlikely I would walk away safely, but I sure as shit wasn't going down without a fight, and I fully intended to cause Desmond hell while I was there.

I messily stuffed the letters back into the bedside table drawer before Dimitri came back in.

For the second time since I had been here, I pretended to be asleep as I waited for Dimitri to doze off. I didn't pack a bag; I didn't plan on taking anything with me other than my stake. I also tucked a pocket knife into the waistband of my jeans, I wasn't sure what use it would have, but I felt better knowing I had a concealed weapon.

I don't know why I was surprised to see Yeva waiting for me, facing me in her armchair. She slowly stood up as I reached the bottom of the stairs.

Despite her size and how frail she was, she pulled me into a tight hug. "I had to thank you, before you go." She pulled back to look at me. "There is a car waiting outside for you again, don't worry about paying for it, Girl. I need you to remember that you are not alone and that no matter how it may seem, there are always people that will help you. This is not goodbye." Her words no doubt had different meanings, but I understood what she was saying.

I lifted my chin ever so slightly, I felt as if she had given me the last bit of strength that I needed to go through with this. "Thank you, Babushka, for everything." She merely nodded at me as I took a few steps towards the front door.

"Roza." I turned to face her as she said my name. "The ring in your pocket, put it on and do not take it off." I had no idea how she knew it was in my pocket, but I pulled it out and slipped it onto my finger. I had meant to put it on before I left but it must have slipped my mind.

I thanked her once more before stepping into the freezing night air. True to her word, there was a taxi parked outside the front of the house, the engine turned on as the driver saw me approaching.

I slid into the back seat and nodded my greeting to the driver. I wouldn't fall asleep during the journey this time, I was going to take note of where we were going; names of streets we passed, distinctive landmarks I could use later if I needed to.

The drive must have taken an hour at least, I didn't recognise any of the streets that we passed but that wasn't much of a surprise.

The driver slowed the taxi until he stopped altogether; we were down a quiet street, nothing out of the ordinary. The driver turned to face me.

"Your destination is down that road, about a 10 minute walk, the big warehouse, you can't miss it. I would have liked to have taken you closer, but I was told to drop you off here." He had a very strong Russian accent, but I could just about understand him.

"Here is fine, thank you." I didn't have any money to tip him, but I could guess that Yeva paid him generously to take me to the middle of nowhere in the middle of the night. I stepped out of the car and into the bitterly cold night air. I glanced back at the taxi once more as he turned around and drove off. I was alone.

I made my way in the direction he told me, no streetlights, just a deserted street leading God-knows where. Why wouldn't Yeva just make him drop me right outside the warehouse?

The building was easy to see in the distance, it was a huge structure with lights on inside, shining into the blackness outside. There was not a single sound outside other than the crunching of the gravel beneath my feet as I walked.

The realisation of the fact that I had no idea what I was walking into dawned on me, and I hesitated as I got closer to the looming warehouse. What would Dimitri do?

I decided to make a detour through the bushes and trees that lined the street, I felt somewhat safer knowing they didn't know that I was coming.

When I reached the building I didn't go in straight away. The windows were high up, too high for me to see over. Like that would stop me. I shimmied myself up a drainpipe until I could just glance into one of the windows, and into the building.

The room was massive and mostly empty. In the centre of the room was a few foldable tables and a few chairs. One was in the centre of the room; I could guess that it was for me. There were at least half a dozen men standing around in the centre of the room, one I recognised to be Desmond. The men surrounding him seemed to be a mix of Dhampir and Moroi. A chill spread through my body when I noticed two Strigoi standing within the group, the others looked slightly uncomfortable but Desmond was perfectly at ease with them. Shit.

I dropped down from the drainpipe and took gasped down as much air as I could fit into my lungs, I had to calm down. There was no way I would let them see my fear. I took a few more deep breaths until I made my way towards the door.

They had another thing coming if they thought I was going to knock on the front fucking door.

I squared my shoulders and took a deep breath before gripping the door handle and opening the door.

 **There we have Chapter 21! I'm sorry you've had to wait so long, but it took me a while to write this chapter and I've been a busy bee recently! I'm so sorry to those of you who were hoping she would tell Dimitri she was going, then the Belikov's would get hurt! Thank you so much to everyone who has followed, favourited and reviewed this story, I appreciate every single one, and thanks to everyone who answered my question last chapter, I loved hearing about you all! Thanks so much for reading, I hope you enjoy the chapter, please let me know what you think!**


	22. Chapter 22

**Rose's Point of View.**

The smell inside the room hit me as soon as the door was open an inch. It smelt sterile. I hated to think what type of things had happened in this massive warehouse.

Desmond and his people were in my line of sight as soon as I opened the door. The Strigoi turned to look at me as soon as they caught my scent. I didn't hesitate, I walked right in.

I kept my gaze solidly on Desmond and I made my way over. I was completely out in the open here, completely vulnerable. There was nothing between me and them, just looming space ahead of me and all around.

I tried assessing the building as I approached them, but it was difficult to do without breaking eye contact with Desmond. I could tell that there were no windows I would be able to reach without climbing something, they were all at least two storeys up. There was one door aside from the one I walked in through, it was marked as a fire exit but would no doubt be locked.

I felt almost naked as I made my way towards the men, looking as confident as I could, they were all staring right at me. The walk took longer than I would have liked, but the room was so God-damn big. The ceiling was high up, making me feel even smaller and more vulnerable.

Desmond was giving me a sickly sweet smile the whole time I was approaching them, but his men were just staring me down; expressionless.

Once I was close enough, Desmond opened his arms and approached me. "Ah, Rosemarie! It's so good to see you, I was beginning to worry you wouldn't turn up." He embraced me as if we were long lost friends; he even went so far as to kiss either of my cheeks. It took every ounce of will power not to grab my stake and gut him there and then, but I knew the Strigoi would see me going for it, and I wouldn't last another heartbeat, instead I just stood there rigidly, I didn't move a muscle.

"Cut the bullshit and tell me why I'm here." My response clearly delighted him, as he began laughing. The laugh of a mad man.

He turned to face his men, still laughing. "Didn't I tell you she was wonderful?" He turned back to me. "You are here, Rosemarie, because you came here. Because that was the smart thing to do, now no harm will come to the Belikov's." I had to hold in my reaction as he said their name. "So you are going to cooperate and tell me what I need to know, and then you can run back to the Belikov's absolutely safe and sound."

I smiled back at him. "Of course, what do you want to know?" I asked him, feigning innocence.

"Good girl, now tell me where Abe Mazur is hiding." I had to hold myself back from slapping him in the face for calling me a _good girl._

Instead, I smiled sweetly at him once more. "If I knew, I swear I'd tell you. I barely know the guy, and certainly don't know where he lives." As soon as I spoke the words, a cold hand gripped the back of my neck as strong as a vice and shoved my head down, forcing me to bend at the hips, almost like I was bowing to the man before me.

Desmond bent down to look me in the eye once more, almost as if he were speaking to a child. "I'll give you one more chance, sweet Rosemarie, only because I like you. Where is Abe Mazur?"

I collected as much air into my lungs as I could, which wasn't easy with the cold and lifeless hand gripping my throat. "I already told you. I. Don't. Know."

Before I could even brace myself, the Strigoi gripping my throat pulled me up and slammed my body against the cold, hard floor. My cheekbone hit the floor first, and painfully absorbed the impact. I tasted blood. A heart beat later the undead bastard pulled me up once more by my throat and practically threw me into the chair in the centre of the room, as if I weighed little more than a feather.

Before I had chance to touch my cheekbone and assess the damage, my hands were pulled behind my back and bound there, my legs were strapped to each of the front chair legs and the silver stake was removed from my pocket.

I fought against the dizziness in my mind and looked around me; they were all staring down at me. I took the time I had to assess each one of them. Most were largely built, tall and muscular. Even the Strigoi looked like they would have been strong in their previous life, now they were lethal. There was one Dhampir that caught my attention, he was younger than the rest, he couldn't have been much older than me, and he didn't have as much anger in his eyes than the rest. I couldn't help but wonder how he ended up here.

Desmond kept himself about a foot away from me, as if he was afraid to get himself dirty by standing too close to me. "Tell me, Rosemarie, where is Ibrahim Mazur? I'm losing my patience."

I looked up at him and didn't look away. "I'm losing my patience too; you keep asking me the same question, which I don't know the answer to." He smiled down at me. I didn't see the fist flying towards my face until I felt the impact against my cheek. I looked to the Strigoi responsible for the blow. I spat at him and blood landed on his shirt. He bared his teeth at me and called me a filthy name.

I wasn't sure why I felt the need to protect Abe, after all I barely knew him. But he's family, and while Desmond has me, there's no way I'll let him learn anything about Abe, I couldn't handle the guilt if anything were to happen because of me.

"Enough. I am tired of this and the sun will rise soon. You two," He said while gesturing to two of the Dhampir's. "Stay here and don't take your eyes off her. The rest, come with me. We'll be back tomorrow." Desmond strode away from me, the majority of his men following him like fucking lap dogs.

I didn't realise that a Strigoi had stayed until I felt his hand trace a line from my shoulder, up to my lips and then down to the opposite side of my neck. He walked in front of me so I could see his face. Blood red eyes gazed at me with a hungry expression. His dark hair fell past his shoulders, his razor-sharp nail dragged up my neck until he pinched my lower lip between his thumb and his forefinger. I felt a trickle of blood run down my chin. He caught a drop of my blood on his finger, and brought it to his lips. The gesture made me want to gag.

"You would make an incredible blood-whore." He growled out, his lips were at my neck faster than I could anticipate.

His fangs grazed my neck. No. No. No. Anything but that. I needed a clear head if I was going to get out of here alive. I could feel my heart rate picking up; no doubt he could hear it. "Not quite as brave as you look, are you?" He said before his fangs pierced the skin of my neck. There was nothing pleasurable about it, he was not gentle. I felt every mouthful of my blood leaving my vein and rushing into his mouth and down his throat.

For a moment, I didn't think he would stop. I thought maybe that would be it, this would be the end. But instead he pulled himself away from my neck, and smiled at me. A trail of my blood dripped from his lips. "Exquisite." He said before standing up, and exiting the warehouse quicker than I thought possible.

My head was spinning, or maybe my head was still and it was just the world that was spinning. Clouds of black smoke covered the edges of my vision. I couldn't clear it no matter how many times I blinked. My breaths entered and left my lungs in sharp rasps.

I sat for an endless amount of time, looking at nothing but the empty space before me. I was wasting time. The two Dhampir who had been left behind were stationed by either of the doors. One to my left and one to my right. "Water." I choked out.

I had to do something; I would not sit around and wait to be killed. I looked to the Dhampir guard to the right; he was scowling at the other who was to my left. I noticed the one on my left was the younger, more innocent looking one. Bingo.

I willed tears to come to my eyes as he pulled out a bottle of water from a bag on the floor. He looked hesitant as he approached me, like he was scared of me. Perfect.

He stumbled around with the water bottle before gesturing for me to open my mouth. I tipped my head back and drank as he held the bottle to my lips. I drank every last drop.

He lowered the bottle and went to turn around, but hesitated when I spoke. "Please. Please help me. I don't know why I'm here. I haven't done anything wrong. You have to help me." I sobbed out the words as the tears strolled down my cheeks.

The young Dhampir looked up and over my head, most likely to the other guard, I didn't dare look.

"I'm sorry, I can't help you. Please be quiet, or you'll only make it worse for yourself." There was nothing threatening in his voice at all, he was almost as scared as I was. He walked away then, as I expected him to.

The boy was too nice for his own good, too weak. But he would come in handy.

Despite the uncomfortable position and the hard wooden chair, I managed to doze off to sleep; I suppose I had major blood loss to thank for that.

I dreamt of a frozen pond, Dimitri and I were skating on it once again. He didn't deserve me; he didn't deserve the chaos I brought crashing into his life. I'll never be able to forgive myself for the pain I have no doubt caused him by leaving again. I just hoped that one day he would understand that I did it for him; I did it for him and his family.

For a moment I thought maybe it had all just been a dream, there would be no warehouse, there would be no Desmond, and I would wake up in Dimitri's arms. That was not the case.

I woke up to a bucket of ice cold water being tipped over my head. "Good morning, Rosemarie." I didn't dignify his greeting with any sort of response. I simply ignored him.

I also ignored his constant questions about Abe. I ignored the beatings. I ignored it when more ice cold water was thrown over me, and the air-using Moroi froze it to my skin. I also ignored it when the fire-using Moroi burnt and melted the frozen water off my skin.

I simply gritted my teeth and stared straight ahead, I stared at nothing. I could tell Desmond was losing his patience.

"If you plan on ignoring me for the rest of your time here, perhaps I'll get Ezekiel here to turn you into a Strigoi, and then you can simply find and kill Ibrahim yourself." Desmond said while gesturing to the Strigoi who had fed from me before.

A smile spread onto Desmond's face. "You know what; I like that idea a lot. I'm almost embarrassed I didn't think of it sooner. Although this has been a lot of fun. Yes, we'll turn you tomorrow." He simply patted my head like I was a fucking dog and left.

Ezekiel remained once more; I knew the bite was coming this time. This time he used the other side of my neck, as if he wanted to damage as much of me as possible. "I'm very much looking forward to tomorrow, you'll make a magnificent Strigoi." He whispered in my ear before he fled once more.

As soon as the door was shut behind him, I vomited all over the floor to my side.

I had realised that being turned into a Strigoi was a possibility, but I had no idea how impatient Desmond would be about it. I thought I would have time. I tried to control my breathing; I had to get my thoughts in order.

I glanced at the young Dhampir who was once again guarding the door. He was looking at me, I could tell he was trying to hide it, but I could see the pity in his eyes, and there was fear there too. I had to think of a plan, and I had to do it fast.

 **There we have Chapter 22! I really hope you enjoyed this chapter, thanks so much to everyone who has reviewed, followed and favourited. I have recently been reading the 'Throne of Glass' series, and I'm completely addicted! But I'm on the last book and wondered if anyone had any other similar book series they could recommend me? I loved the Red Queen, The Bone Season and all ones like that, so would definitely recommend those if anyone is looking for something new to read, and would love to hear all about your favourite book series if anyone feels like helping me out! Thanks again so much for all of your support, I really hope you enjoy the chapter.**


	23. Chapter 23

**Dimitri's Point of View.**

This Christmas was one of the best I had had yet, with both Roza and my family together; there was nothing more I could possibly ask for. The spontaneous evening spent with Roza made it so much better. I had never really had the chance to explore what we had together, we had never had the chance to be out in the open together, and now that we could, even if it was just while we were in Baia, I would make the most of it.

There was once a time when I didn't think Roza could possibly _be_ any more beautiful. That woman never failed to surprise me, so why would she stop now? I was completely entranced by her beauty as she glided along the frozen lake.

My sisters and I used to go to the lake a lot during the colder months; it would always be a special place to me.

It was a struggle to keep from claiming Roza's lips with my eager mouth all night, but after our intense conversation, she kissed me, and I was lost to the world. I was surprised we even made it to our bedroom when we got home that evening. My woman had me wrapped around her little finger. I would go to the ends of the earth for her.

I slept soundly that night, with Roza's bare skin pressed against my own. I knew there would be times where we would have to be apart from each others, our career's pretty much guaranteed it, so I would savour every last second I spent with the love of my life. I had every intention of marrying this woman, and showing the world just how much she means to me.

Rose Hathaway is in no way a simple woman. A lot of the time, she takes pride in knowing that she is hard to read, and will often try her best to keep her emotions hidden. I thought that by now I had found a way to get through those barriers, I thought that she could trust me, and I could trust her, she of course, proved me wrong.

And so my fear was not unjustified, when I awoke the morning after Christmas day, the morning after falling asleep with Roza's naked form between my arms, and she was no longer beside me. The sheets where she had once been sprawled across were now cold.

I let myself stay in bed for a moment longer before I began to panic, perhaps she was in the bathroom, and perhaps she woke up early. Every single possibility ran through my head, each thought process going from bad to worse.

I allowed my eyes to scan the room around me, nothing seemed to have moved. I finally pulled myself out of bed to explore further. Roza's phone was still on the bedside table, the backpack she took with her before was still stuffed in the bottom of my wardrobe. As far as I could tell all of her clothes were still hanging up as she left them.

I quickly dressed myself and headed downstairs. Mama was in the kitchen, she smiled when she saw me walk in. The beautiful smile soon faded when she saw my facial expression.

"Tell me you've seen Roza, please." I said, I didn't have time to mess around.

A worried frown graced her features. "I'm sorry son; I haven't seen her since the two of you left last night." I nodded to her as my only response to what she said. I grabbed the car keys from the hook by the front door and left without another word.

I felt like I was having fucking déjà vu. My thoughts were clouded by everything Roza. I pulled over after hours of aimlessly driving around town. I had to think like Rose. She has her own logical thoughts running through her head whenever she makes a decision, and as impulsive as she may be, I knew she wouldn't have left without a good reason.

I had to think, why would she leave? She was happy here, I knew deep down she was at peace with me and my family, she had said so herself on several occasions. But something had been bothering her more recently; I could see it in her eyes. I had meant to ask her about it, but something always came up and we never had the conversation. Why, why didn't I just ask her what was wrong? Then maybe she would still be here, she would still be safe and by my side.

This was useless; I was just wasting time driving all over town. I headed back home, breaking a few speed limits.

The rest of my family were up when I got home, they were all sat in the living room, all with worried expressions on their faces.

"Still no sign of her?" Mama asked. I simply shook my head and scanned their faces. All so worried about Rose. She really was a part of this family, more so than I had ever realised before. My eyes fell on Yeva's knowing yet senile face, I knelt beside where she was seated in her chair.

"Please, Babushka. Don't do this to me again. If you know something, please tell me, I have to find her." She looked thoughtful for a moment, as if she was considering her answer.

"You're right Dimka, you do need to find her. But you do not need me to help you; you are so close to finding what you need to get to her. Keep looking, Grandson, and you will find her by yourself." I stood up when she had finished.

"Thank you, anything else I should know?" I asked.

"Although you may be able to find her yourself, you will need someone else for the journey, for the correct outcome. You'll know when you know." She continued knitting after she had spoken, apparently that was all she was giving me.

I churned her words round in my head as I made my way upstairs, taking the steps three at a time. Surely the best place for me to start looking for any kind of indication as to where she could be would be our bedroom.

The first place I went to was the wardrobe; I pulled everything out and put it back in again, and found nothing. I went to the desk and searched every inch for any hint of where she could be, and still found nothing. I searched everywhere I could think of in the room to no avail. I was so close to giving up, there had to be something. I sat down on Roza's side of the bed and put my head in my hands. Her scent drifted up to meet my nose from her pillow.

I was looking out for Roza's stake as I searched our room from top to bottom. It wasn't here. That gave me some kind of relief. She may be alone and possibly walking into a death trap, but she wasn't unarmed, and I knew for a fact that she wouldn't go down without a fight.

I was running out of places to look. It was at that moment when a memory drifted into the front of my mind. I had just come back from the shower and Roza slipped something into her bedside table, but I didn't have a chance to ask her about it. My eyes darted to the bedside table by my side. There was a part of me that didn't want to look; what if what I found brought nothing but bad news?

I took a deep breath and opened the drawer. There had been barely anything in that drawer before I left for America what feels like a lifetime ago, as I never slept on that side of the bed. Now, however, the space was filled with pieces of paper, some folded, some scrunched up, all kept hidden from me for God knows how long.

I picked up the first piece of paper, it was a threat addressed to Rose. Whoever wrote these letters was threatening me and my family to get to Roza. The thought made me sick to my stomach. Could she have left to protect us? I knew that when Rose loved she did it fiercely, but I had no idea she would endure this for us.

I read through letter after letter, all containing similar things, promises to see her soon, or else something awful would happen to my family. When I reached the last letter, there was an address written on it, with a time and a place. Last night. I hadn't heard of the place, but I had a vague idea of where it was. I tugged my duster on and shoved each letter in to my pocket. I was about to slam the drawer shut and storm my way over to the address written on the last letter. When a birthday card caught my eye, which had not been there before either.

I opened the card and read the message inside. It was addressed to Rose, it also held an address written inside, this time it was from Abe. The previous letters had not been signed from anyone, and were written in a different style of handwriting, so at least I knew it wasn't Abe Mazur doing this. But it wasn't hard for me to guess who had been sending my Roza these threatening letters this whole time. Desmond.

Babushka had said I would need someone else to get to Rose, now I knew who I needed. I dreaded going to his house, but I knew he would help me if he knew that Rose was in danger. I memorised the two addresses and headed downstairs, my pocket filled with letters.

Karolina stopped me at the bottom of the stairs; I gave her a look which surely told her _now is not the time._ "Is there anything we can do to help Dimka?"

I sighed. "No, just stay here in case she finds a way back. But lock all the doors and windows, and don't let anyone in unless it's me or Roza. Stay alert and stay safe." I said before rushing out the front door with the car keys gripped firmly in my hands once more.

I hoped that now Rose had fulfilled her end of the bargain that Desmond would leave my family alone, but I had to make sure they were safe if something went wrong and he decided to turn against them.

It took me just over half an hour to reach Ibrahim Mazur's house. I prayed to whoever would listen that he was there. I stopped the tire with a screech of tire against tarmac, and took the stairs leading up to the grand front door two at a time.

I tried my best to survey the area as the house loomed in front of me, but I had more important things on my mind.

I banged my fist against the solid front door until it opened. Ibrahim Mazur stood before me dressed in a fine tailored suit, accompanied by a deep purple scarf around his neck. "Ah Dimitri, what a pleasant surprise!" He exclaimed, as if we were old friends reunited after years apart.

"Rose is gone, I need your help." The familiar smile fell from his face and I knew he was in mobster mode now. He stepped aside and gestured for me to enter.

I glanced around the hallway as I walked in. It was hard to imagine Rose in a house like this; she did spend a night here after all. It was strange to think that she could have grown up with this kind of luxury if she was given the chance.

I hastily explained what I knew to Abe and gave him the letters I had been carrying, I told him that Desmond had been threatening Rose and using myself and my family as a way to get her to go to him. And that he must need her for something, but I didn't know what for yet.

He was nothing but serious now. He really did care for Rose. "He's using her to get to me. He's done it before, that's why Janine took Rosemarie to the Academy in the first place." He swore in Turkish. "I shouldn't have let this happen."

"There's nothing we can do about that now, but we have to go to her, we have to get her out." He looked at me for a moment, as if assessing me, then nodded and stood up.

"I'm making a phone call, I have a feeling we'll need backup." I nodded in agreement and waited by the front door. I counted the seconds that passed.

Abe returned after 36 seconds. He had no visible weapons but I knew he was armed. We stormed our way out of the front door and down the steps, where a black SUV type car was now parked in front of the house. Four men- Guardians- stood in front of the vehicle, ready and waiting.

Abe quickly introduced me to his personal guardians; I didn't have time to wonder if I should trust them as we all piled in the car. Mazur's head guardian, Pavel, drove.

The guardians were heavily armed; a hand-gun was thrust into my hand by Abe. I held his gaze for a moment but didn't thank him. I had been well trained in fire-arms, but the weight of a gun always felt unfamiliar in my hands.

We were met with a giant warehouse when we reached the address written on the last letter Rose received. I hoped and prayed we weren't too late.

After Pavel and I scouted the exterior of the building, we came up with a plan. Abe, Pavel and I would simply walk through the front door, and the other three guardians- whose names I had already forgotten- would enter through the door at the back. We had the element of surprise and we would not waste it.

Abe and his guardians would deal with Desmond and the men he no doubt had inside. My main priority was Rose.

We waited 20 seconds to allow the other three guardians time to get to the door at the back, we would all enter at the same time.

I took a deep breath as I counted down the seconds before throwing open the doors in front of me. My index finger hovered over the trigger of the gun, my stake gripped firmly in my other hand. I was ready to bring all kinds of pain to the men who had kept Roza from me.

Until we stepped in the room as one and I saw her. Every thought slipped from my mind as I saw her. Her almost lifeless body crumpled on the floor, a Strigoi crouched over her, his fangs deep inside her neck.

 **There we have Chapter 23! Woop woop! I loved writing this chapter, especially towards the end as Dimitri came face to face with Abe again! Thank you so much for all your incredible support through this story, I appreciate every single one of you who has favourited, followed and reviewed. Thank you so much for reading, I really hope you enjoy the chapter, please let me know what you think. I can't wait to write the next one, shit is going to go down!**


	24. Chapter 24

**Rose's Point of View.**

About a hundred different thought processes were running through my head all at once as soon as the door to the warehouse was shut, and Desmond and the majority of his men had gone. Leaving only the young Dhampir closest to me, and another one at the other door further away.

I had to think of a way to get out of here, before they turned me. My eyes scanned the room. I had to look for weapons. There, on the table a few feet away, lay my silver stake. They are fucking idiots. Who the hell leaves a weapon in the same room as a prisoner? Think, Rose, think. What else can I use as a weapon? What would Dimitri do? The chair, the wooden chair I was currently tied to! It wouldn't kill a Strigoi, but it would put them out of action for long enough for me to haul ass out of here.

Shit, I almost forgot about the fact that I was actually tied to a chair. I breathed a sigh of relief when I realised I was tied with rope, and not cable ties. I felt something dig into my hip, and I could have laughed out loud when I recalled slipping a pocket knife into the waist band of my jeans before I left the Belikov's house. My jeans now covered in flecks of blood.

I pulled at my wrist restrains as much as I could while drawing as little attention to myself as possible. If I could just reach the knife maybe I could cut myself out of here.

Footsteps. Shit, the older Dhampir must have heard. His heavy boots thudded on the ground with each step he took closer to me. I stilled my hands and straightened my shoulders.

I didn't see the fist flying towards my face until it was too late. Stars danced in the edges of my vision once more. He knelt down in front of me and grabbed my chin with his calloused hand, his lips lifted into a sneer, revealing crooked yellow teeth. "It's a shame the boss has said we can't play with you, you look like you could be a _lot_ of fun." His hand released my chin and trailed down my arm until his hand stopped at my thigh and grabbed a hold of me there. His thumb was digging in hard to my inner thigh. I clenched my teeth; if my hands were free he would regret ever laying hands on me.

He inched his face closer to mine until his nose was pressed against my cheek, I couldn't pull my face any further away. He inhaled deeply. "I suppose what Desmond doesn't know won't hurt him."

His rough hands were at my breasts sooner than I could anticipate. Fear was settling deep in my stomach. "Get your filthy hands off me." I spat the words out through clenched teeth. I had to do something, I would not let him do this to me without putting up a fight. I pulled my head back as far away from him as I could, before throwing my head forward and throwing all the force I could muster into my head hitting his nose. Blood gushed from his nose. My head throbbed. He slapped me in the face.

"Come on, Nate, that's enough. The bitch will probably tell Desmond and I'm not sure he'll let you off easy after what happened last time." The young Dhampir spoke for the first time.

The dirty bastard- Nate- stood up straight and looked at his younger colleague and laughed. "I think you're just jealous." He turned to face me and gripped the top of my shirt with bloodied hands and ripped it down a few inches, revealing the top of my cleavage. My blood boiled. Dirty prick. "There, now we can both enjoy the view." He sneered before sauntering off and exiting through the back door, most likely to clean up the mess I made of his nose.

Now was my chance, I hadn't been left alone with the younger one yet. "Please, you can't let them do this to me; I know you're not like them. When I get out of here you can come with me and they'll never find us. There is a small knife in here." I said, gesturing to my jeans. "Just take it out and put it in my hands and I will do the rest, please!" I was begging by the end, his lower lip was pulled between his teeth and his eyebrows knitted together into a frown. He was considering it.

I allowed a tear to leak from my eye and roll down my cheek. "I know you're better than this. Please, just take the knife and put it in my hands and you won't have to do anything else, I won't say anything." I kept on talking as he took a few steps closer to me.

Every second that passed felt like years, he was looking between from me to the door in which the other guard had just left through.

He held in a breath and then let it go before squaring his shoulders and looking at me once more. "Where is the knife?"

I thanked him profusely as he lifted the hem of my shirt, revealing the small knife poking out of the top of the waistband of my jeans.

I felt a spark of hope that had not been there before when I felt the cool knife slip into my hands. As soon as the job was done the boy walked over to his post by the door once more, as if nothing had happened.

The other man soon returned, swearing like a sailor. The ropes around my wrist were cut by then, but I didn't reveal it, I kept my hands behind my back exactly where they should be, I didn't let the ropes fall either. I would wait until the right moment before revealing myself.

Everything went quiet for some time after that, I allowed myself a moment of peace. I knew that one way or another the next time that Desmond walked through that door, something bad would happen. I would die here, but there was no way I was going alone, I fully intended to take some of these ass-holes down with me.

Despite the Strigoi bite and several blows to the head, my mind was clear the next time Desmond walked through the door with his men, I was ready to play.

He didn't bother with pleasantries this time. "We have run out of time Rosemarie. Where can I find Abe Mazur? Simply tell me, or I will have you turned and you can kill the man yourself." He was stood in front of me with his arms crossed over his chest. Ezekiel, the Strigoi was stood to my right, ready to obey whatever order his master gives him.

"Go to hell." Was all I said, and it was enough. I didn't miss the nod that Desmond gave his Strigoi lackey. And a second later a cold hand was gripping my hair, baring my neck to his fangs.

I waited until the last second, when his fangs had just brushed the pulsing vein in my neck, when I twisted in his grip and shoved the knife through Ezekiel's eye socket. Blood soaked my hand and the knife that was still gripped firmly in my grasp. His undead body fell to the floor, not dead. He'll be up again soon, but it was long enough for me to get out of this hell hole.

I sliced through the ropes in my ankles within seconds and soon the Dhampir were upon me. Three of them altogether, but the younger one who helped me hadn't thrown a punch yet, and I didn't think he would. It took me a few moments but the other two were soon incapacitated.

I tripped the kid during the fight, he went down and didn't get back up again, good, I needed him to stay out of this. Best he pretends he's injured than get caught up in the fight.

Soon I was left facing Desmond; he had a smile on his face. It was then that I realised, there was two Strigoi before. I didn't have time to turn and brace myself before I was thrown into the wooden table to my left. I crashed right through it. Splinters pierced my skin.

I heard Desmond give the order, and soon fangs were in my neck.

I thought I had been close to death before, but never had I felt the life being sucked from my body like this before. With every pull of his mouth I felt myself detach further. I knew I would meet with death tonight, but I at least thought I would be able to take Desmond down with me. What a shame that I spent my last moments disappointed in myself.

Until a door opened and a gunshot was fired. And then two more.

The pressure of the fangs in my neck was gone, as were the blood red eyes that were hungrily looking down at me before my eyes fell shut mere moments ago.

I glanced to the side. The Strigoi had a gaping bullet hole in his shoulder; my stake was about a metre away.

I pulled myself onto my knees and grabbed the stake, the cool silver felt comforting in my hand, it felt even better as I shoved it through the Strigoi's heart.

I looked up to where the noise was coming from then, and a strangled cry escaped my throat as I saw what was unfolding before me.

Dimitri, Abe and three other guardians were fighting Desmond, Ezekiel and the other surviving Dhampir.

No. No. No. Why was he here? He couldn't be here. He can't get hurt because of me. Dimitri was meant to stay out of this.

I could do nothing but watch as Dimitri and the others dealt with Desmond's men. My head was swirling and my vision blurred around the edges. Blood trickled down my neck and I could do nothing to stop it.

I fell to my knees, but Dimitri was suddenly there to catch me before I could fall any further. His soft smell wrapped around my body and I felt like I was home again. We didn't speak, we couldn't relax just yet, this wasn't over.

I looked up once more to see bodies littering the floor. Thankfully they were all Desmond's men. The man himself was stood with his hands held up, speaking with Abe from across the room. I couldn't hear what they were saying, but they were shouting. Abe's guardians were edging towards him, ready to pounce.

I didn't dare move; I felt the safest I had in days with Dimitri's hand gripped firmly in my left hand, and my stake in my right.

I caught a glimpse of the weapon in his hand before I heard Desmond shoot the gun at the ceiling. He wanted our attention and that's exactly what he got, all eyes were on him.

He looked down at me then, looked right through my eyes and into my soul. "Rosemarie." He said, just my name, that one word held so much and so little meaning all at once. I knew the look in his eyes. Compulsion. He was using compulsion on me. The silver charmed ring on my finger throbbed. My mind went blank.

"Stand up." He ordered. I stood up.

"Come here." He said. I obeyed.

My mind was blank, both cloudy and clear at the same time. I didn't worry about what he might do with me now he was in control of me. I didn't worry about what Dimitri might do seeing me like this. I didn't worry or think about anything other than Desmond and what he asked me to do.

I reached his side and stepped into his awaiting embrace. He smiled. And I smiled back.

 **There we have Chapter 24! Another cliff-hanger, I know, I'm sorry! But it will be worth it! (I hope). Thank you so much to all of you who read this story and to those of you who have followed, favourited and reviewed, I appreciate every one of you! I'm all finished with college now so should hopefully have another update on the way this week, but please let me know what you think of this chapter, thanks again for reading I really hope you enjoyed it!**


	25. Chapter 25

**Rose's Point of View.**

Breathe, Rose, breathe. You're under compulsion, so God-damn act like it. I kept my face expressionless; I let every emotion fade from my heart and mind.

Desmond still had his arm wrapped tightly around my waist; I gave a lifeless smile at the action. I've seen plenty of people under compulsion at the hand of Lissa before, I'm sure I could act similarly for just a little while longer, I had to wait until I had my opening.

Thinking of Lissa sent a lick of pain and longing through my heart, I missed her, but I was also glad she wasn't here to see this, to see me like this.

I avoided looking at Dimitri, I chose to either look at the ground or gaze into Desmond's eyes like a dog waiting for its next command.

"Roza. Look at me, please Rose." Dimitri was pleading with me. My eyes flickered to his face and the pain I saw in his eyes almost made my knees buckle. I wanted to run to him and forget any of this had happened.

"She can't hear you, you stupid boy." Dimitri's fists clenched at his side.

I hadn't even thought about how Dimitri would react when he found me again, I hadn't expected to walk out of this warehouse alive, so I hadn't bothered to worry about if he would hate me if we were ever reunited again. I went behind his back and lied to him again. I wouldn't blame him if he never spoke to me again.

"Now that I've got you here, old friend, why don't you hand yourself over to me?" Desmond said to Abe. I hoped and prayed that Abe wouldn't do anything stupid.

"No thanks, I think I'll take my daughter and the rest of my people and leave, I'll even let you live if you don't piss me off any more, _old friend._ " The anger in Abe's eyes could scare any man half to death, he wasn't messing around.

"It's funny actually; your _daughter_ denied even knowing you." He said as he stroked my cheek with the back of his hand. I tried my best not to cringe away from the touch. "That's how she got all these horrible injuries." He said as he brushed my hair behind my ears, revealing the bite marks on either side of my neck. I tried not to sway on my feet as the light-headedness rolled through me again.

Dimitri's face turned murderous as he took a step closer, ready to kill Desmond by the look on his face. I almost screamed at him to stop, he would only get hurt.

I almost broke, I almost told Dimitri to stay back. When Desmond put the barrel of a gun to my temple, Dimitri stopped dead in his tracks.

My heartbeat sped up, and I forced my breathing to remain even, unaffected. I would not give myself away now. The ring on my finger kept on throbbing, reminding me who I really am, keeping me stable.

"You know, I almost had beautiful Rosemarie here kill you herself. Just as you stormed in we were about to turn her. I still think I like that idea." He turned to me, looking into my eyes once more. "Rosemarie, kill your father, and the others if they try to stop you."

The stake was still in my hand. Dimitri and Abe's guardians got into a defensive position; they had been trained to eliminate any threat to their charge, even if it was his own daughter.

I took a step forward and raised the stake. I prayed they wouldn't attack me before I had the chance to do what I needed to do. I'm not sure I would survive even a simple attack manoeuvre from Dimitri or one of the guardians, I felt weak, like my bones were brittle and like my blood couldn't pump through my body quick enough.

My eyes flickered to Dimitri's once more, I kept my face blank and emotionless, and I wished he would understand.

I got into a defensive stance, mirroring that of my mentors. I attacked, but instead of aiming for Abe or one of his many defenders, I turned and thrust the stake into Desmond's chest, right into his heart.

I watched as every ounce of life drained from his eyes, and he laughed, he laughed as he died. He fell to the floor, and dragged me down with him. My knees buckled and I couldn't hold myself up any longer. His blood covered my shaking hand.

Dimitri was by my side within a heartbeat, pulling me into his arms and away from the body whose life I just ended. I felt his duster wrap around me before I realised I was shaking.

"It's ok Roza, I've got you, you're safe now." He murmured into my ear. My breaths came out in ragged gasps. I blinked through the tears forming in my eyes.

One of Abe's guardians had his gun pointed to the Dhampir that helped me, he was injured but alive, and by the looks of things the guardian was about to finish him off.

I acted before I could think about what I was doing. I scrambled out of Dimitri's protective grasp, even as he tried to hold me back. I threw myself in front of the boy, between him and the gun which was previously pointed at his head.

"Stop! Don't shoot!" I screamed, I held my hands up in a submissive gesture. The guardian lowered the gun ever so slightly, but still held it firmly in his hand. "Please, he helped me; I would be dead if it weren't for him. I promised I would get him out of here." I said, pleading with Abe and his guardians.

The guardians looked to Abe for confirmation of what they actions should be. He thought about it for a moment, I didn't move from my position in front of the boy. My head swayed and tears stained my cheeks, but I didn't move.

Abe simply nodded but that was all I needed to see. I turned and dropped to my knees beside the boy. Blood was leaking from a bullet hole in his chest, but he was conscious. "Hey, you did it, you helped me, we're both going to be okay, I promise." I said as I covered the wound with my hands, applying as much pressure as I could to stop the bleeding.

His green eyes sparkled and he gave me a half-hearted smile. "I'm so sorry I let it go on for so long. I hope you can forgive me." A tear rolled down his cheek. I felt the eyes of everyone in the room on us, and ignored them completely.

"Of course I forgive you, you saved me. I would be dead, or worse, without you." He smiled once more, soon followed by a painful sounding cough, blood leaked from the corner of his mouth.

"What's your name?" I asked, if only to keep him talking, to distract him.

"Michael." He rasped. His Russian accent was becoming stronger the more life slipped through his fingers. I swallowed the lump in my throat; I would be strong for him like he was for me.

"Thank you Michael, what you did for me was so brave, I will never forget what you did, and you are a true Guardian." I knew the words would be important to him if he felt as passionate about being a guardian as I did.

He smiled once more as his eyes slid shut. "Thank you, for freeing me from those people." I could just about make out the words.

He let out a long breath, his chest moving as the air left his lungs. He didn't take another breath.

The rest was a blur, I felt myself being lifted into strong arms, Dimitri's smell wrapped around me and I knew I was safe. I was safe to close my eyes and let the world pass me by for a moment or two.

 **There we have Chapter 25! I'm really sorry its short but I'm going on holiday tomorrow and haven't had time to write as I've been packing! Thanks so much to everyone who has followed, favourited and reviewed, and thanks to everyone for reading and sticking with me! I won't to update for at least another** _ **two weeks**_ **I'm afraid, as I'll be on holiday and won't have my laptop, so hopefully this chapter will keep you going! Once again I'm really sorry it's short, and thanks again for reading, please let me know what you think!**


	26. Chapter 26

**Dimitri's Point of View.**

My eyes felt scratchy and dry due to my lack of blinking; instead I gazed down at Roza's sleeping form. I feared if I blinked, she would disappear again. I couldn't let that happen. My jaw ached from clenching my teeth for so long.

My mind was clear and yet blurred at the same time. Everything went so fast after we left that warehouse filled with corpses behind. A chair and a pool of my Roza's blood still in the middle of the room. The sight would never leave my memory.

I did not let go of Rose until we reached my house, where I laid her on the sofa in the living room and my mother shoved me out of the way so she could inspect her injuries. Injuries I couldn't prevent.

I hated myself for not being able to take Rose to a hospital, but being a Dhampir it was simply impossible. I wished I could give her a better life. I wished I could do _anything_ to help her. Instead I paced around the room while my mother got to work on cleaning Roza's wounds and bandaging them as best as she could.

Rose had an array of injuries. Burns around her wrists from being bound to the chair, numerous bite marks on her neck, scratches on her face, her stomach and ribs were littered with bruises. And they were just the injuries we could see, Mama suspects that she also experienced some head trauma, which partially caused her current unconscious state.

I now sit with Roza's head on my lap, still on the sofa in the living room so that Mama can get to her easily when needed. Mama and I both spent hours cleaning Rose up, but every time my eyes scan over her, I see more specks of blood that we missed the previous time. It's hard to tell whether the blood is hers or someone else's.

Although I have since changed Roza into her pyjamas and dressing gown, it did not escape my notice that her shirt was carefully torn down her cleavage. The thought of one of those bastards touching Rose against her will made my blood boil, I bit the inside of my cheek until I could taste blood to control my flaming anger.

Roza has been unconscious for two days now; I have barely left her side. New Year's Eve has been and gone. Mama, Babushka and I all stayed with Roza, even as the fireworks started outside all around town. My sisters were hesitant about leaving to go and party when Rose is in such a fragile condition, but I insisted that Roza would want them to celebrate and enjoy the night. The words sounded wrong coming from my mouth, it sounded as if she had already died. The thought made my chest tighten until there was no air left in my lungs.

I realised I had the right to be annoyed with Roza, she broke her promise to me and left when she made me believe she wouldn't. But I had come to the realisation that I would have done the same thing if I were in her shoes. I would do anything to protect her and my family, and that's exactly what she did.

I soon felt myself dozing off against my will, I had to stay awake, I needed to stay awake. I couldn't keep my eyes open, I wished I had. My dreams brought me no break to the worry I was feeling for Roza. I dreamt of her in that warehouse, being tortured. My imagination was conjuring up all kinds of nightmarish sights, I just had to hope and pray that what Rose experienced in that warehouse wasn't half as bad as what my nightmares were showing me.

I jerked awake when I felt movement by my side. I snapped my gaze down to Rose to see her eyelids fluttering; she seemed to be mumbling something. I looked around the living room, the sun hadn't even risen yet, everyone would still be asleep.

I recognised Rose's mumbling as a sure sign of her being in one of Adrian Ivashkov's spirit dreams. I clenched my fist. I was glad Rose was talking to her friend, I knew she missed everyone back in America, but now wasn't really the best time; I was so desperate to see her beautiful eyes open again. I just had to know she was ok.

Rose's mumbling continued for a few more minutes, I couldn't distinguish many words, but I was sure I heard my name as well as Adrian's, and I saw a hint of a smile grace her dormant face. I was doing my best to stop my mind from thinking the worst when suddenly her eyes snapped open and she shot up on the sofa, swearing as soon as she sat upright.

"Dimitri?" She whispered, her back was facing me.

I gently placed my hand on her shoulder; I couldn't help but notice her flinch when my skin met hers. "Roza, it's okay, you're safe." I murmured into her hair as she turned and curled herself into my side, burying her head into my chest.

I brushed her hair out of her face and saw a stray tear fall from her eye. "Oh Roza, you're home now, I promise I'll never let anything like that happen again." My need to protect her was running so strongly through my veins, I had no idea how to convey it to her.

She sat up and looked me directly in the eye for the first time since she'd woken up. "I am so sorry Dimtiri, I never meant for you to go there, you weren't supposed to see that, you weren't supposed to get involved." Is that what she was worried about?

"Roza you are the love of my life, I would have gone to the end of the earth to get you back by my side. I would do anything for you, you have to know that." The smallest hint of a smile graced her face before a determined look settled over her features.

"I know, Dimitri. And I would do anything for you, that's why I went, that's why you were supposed to stay out of it. When I saw you walk into that hellhole, I thought that was it, I thought you were going to die, I don't know what I would have done, and it would have been my entire fault." Her breathing was heavier than before; I glanced down at her parted lips and couldn't help myself.

I laced my fingers through her hair and ever so gently pulled her towards me until her lips met mine. Her arms slid around my neck as she pulled me closer, she threaded her fingers through the ends of my hair and I had to suppress a groan. How had I gone without this for so long?

When our lips finally parted, I could do nothing but gaze into her eyes. "I missed you." I whispered.

She smiled once more and settled herself into my side. "I missed you too, how long was I out?"

I glanced down at her to find her looking up at me expectantly. "Just over two days."

Her eyes widened ever so slightly. "Wow that was a pretty long nap." She said, trying to brush it off. "Is everyone okay? Abe and your family?"

I couldn't help but smile at her protective nature. "They're all fine, everyone is asleep upstairs, it's still early. Abe and his guardians have been over to check how you were doing; they'll probably be along again later."

Our conversation soon came to an end as we watched the sun come up through the living room window, I finally felt at peace having Roza wrapped up safely in my arms.

"How was your chat with Ivashkov?" I asked as casually as possible. I always found myself curious as to what they spoke about during spirit dreams; I still couldn't quite wrap my head around the thought of it.

"I almost forgot about that, it was fine. I didn't tell him what happened and he didn't suspect anything; I wouldn't want them to worry. I suppose now the holidays are over, we'll have to go back to the academy soon?" She asked, there was a hopeful tone in her voice, almost like she didn't want to leave, even after everything that had happened here.

"We'll give you a chance to recover and then we'll have to book a flight back. I've been giving Alberta somewhat regular updates on your progress; I have no idea how I'm going to explain this." All my thoughts had been taken up with worrying about Rose recently, but The Academy and Alberta also tugged on a few of my worrying thoughts, I had been sending Alberta progress reports throughout our time here, I tended to under exaggerate, I had no idea how I would deal with this one.

Rose studied her fingernails, it didn't escape my notice when she picked a bit of dried blood out from under one of her nails, I'd missed another spot. She didn't mention it.

"Just leave it out of your next report, and we'll talk to her in person about it when we get back." Rose suggested, I had to admit that was a pretty good way of handling the situation.

Roza released a big sigh before speaking. "We're going to have to go back to _Mentor and student and nothing more_ aren't we?" She looked up at me once more and there was no hiding the disappointment in her eyes.

"I'm sorry Roza but we just have to wait until graduation, then we'll be at court and I can wake up with you by my side every morning." I said while placing a trail of kisses from her cheek down her shoulder, I felt her smile against my face.

I hadn't properly spoken to Roza about it yet, but I had every intention of spending the rest of my life with her, I couldn't imagine living life any other way.

 **There we have Chapter 26! I am so so so so sorry for the delay, I had been on holiday for like two weeks and then I've been working pretty much nonstop since! But I am back! I thought it was important to show how Dimitri is feeling during this time, I really hope you enjoyed the insight into his thoughts, please let me know what you think of the chapter as I love to hear your feedback. Thank you to everyone who has followed, favourited and reviewed this story, it means so much to me! Thank you so much for reading, I really hope you enjoy the chapter!**


	27. Chapter 27

**Rose's Point of View.**

Another day passed before I made myself get up and off the sofa. I felt like such a burden taking up all this space in the Belikov's living room, and knowing they'd spent so much time and effort looking after me made me feel so guilty, I was nothing but a nuisance to them.

Dimitri had gone up to take a shower, he felt safe leaving me now I was awake and talking again. Once he was gone and I was alone in the room I took a deep breath and pulled myself up from the sofa. My legs felt wobbly and my head was spinning for a while before I steadied myself. I carefully made my way to the kitchen where I could hear Olena pottering around.

Her eyes lit up when she saw me enter the room. "Ah Roza, it's so good to see you on your feet again, you must be starving!"

I _was_ starving, but that wasn't why I came in here. "I actually just wanted to speak with you for a moment, if that's ok?" I asked hesitantly.

"Of course dear, is everything alright?" She asked as she pulled out a chair for me and took a seat of her own at the table in the centre of the room.

I smiled at her caring nature. "Everything is fine now, thanks to you. I just wanted to tell you how grateful I am for everything you've done for me since I've been here. I know I haven't made life easy for you, and I just wanted to apologise for how difficult everything has been. If I had any idea how horrible all of this would have been for you and your family, I never would have come here." I found my eyes filling with tears but willed them not to fall, I didn't deserve to be weak and upset after everything this woman and her family had done for me.

"Oh Roza, what are you talking about? You had no control over the actions that took place, they were not your fault, and I know for a fact that you did everything you could to keep us out of it, and for that I will always be grateful. The safety of my family means everything to me Roza, and you have been a part of this family since before I even met you."

Her words held more meaning to me than I could ever imagine. How could this one woman care so much about me when we had barely known each other a month? She has been more of a mother to me than my own ever has.

"Thank you, Olena, for everything. I wish there was some way I could repay you for all you've done for me." I said, I felt like I owed her more than I could ever give.

"You don't need to repay me for anything, Roza. The happiness and love you have brought to Dimka's life is more than I could ever wish for." Her smile was so kind, I could do nothing but hug her tight, and she happily returned the gesture.

I pulled back sharply. "I suppose I should go and shower, I don't suppose I smell very nice." I said sheepishly.

"That's probably not a bad idea, love. Your father will most likely be round sooner or later." It was still strange for me to hear Zmey being referred to as my father, we hadn't really had much chance to bond as a father and daughter are supposed to.

I thanked Olena once more before making my way upstairs. The bathroom door was still closed and I could hear the shower running so I knew Dimitri must still be in there. I walked to the end of the hallway and stepped into Dimitri's bedroom.

Everything seemed more or less the way it was when I left, except my bedside table drawer was open and the mass of letters from Desmond littered the floor. The bed was also unmade, which was a massive indication of Dimitri's stress and unease over the past few days; everything was normally spotless and pristine in here.

I let out a breath I didn't realise I had been holding and shut the drawer. I crouched down on the ground and began collecting up the scrunched up letters from the floor, my head began throbbing from the movement. I was careful not to read any of them, I didn't need to read the words to know what they said, I would never forget any of the threats against the Belikov's that were written on the pages.

I was just picking up the last of the letters when the bedroom door opened. "Roza." Was all he said, awe and shock laced his voice; he must have been surprised to see me off the sofa.

I turned to look at him and my jaw dropped when I did. My knees trembled and I ended up falling onto the floor facing him. Dimitri stood in the doorway wearing nothing but a towel, which was hanging very low on his hips. Water still dripped from his hair and fell past his chest down his stomach.

I had seen Dimitri naked plenty of times now, but his beauty never failed to amaze me.

Concern plagued his beautiful face when he saw my position on the floor with the letters clenched in my hands; he was soon crouching in front of me, his hand lifting my chin. "Are you okay?" He asked simply.

I gulped and finally closed my mouth; I must have been gaping like a fish out of water.

He was about to ask if I was okay again, but I didn't let him utter the words. Instead I laced my fingers through his hair and pulled him closer until his lips fell onto mine.

His arms were on either side of me, supporting his body weight so he wasn't lying completely on top of me. The muscles in his arms were straining and I thought I was going to lose it there and then.

He muttered my name against my lips before moving his kisses down to my neck. "You are incredible, Dimitri Belikov." I gasped as he nibbled on the skin just above my shoulder.

I pushed him off me so that he was now sitting with his back against the side of the bed; I climbed into his lap and straddled him, kissing him once more. I trailed my hands lightly down his bare chest until I reached the towel and started to tug.

He caught my wrists in his enormous hands before I could undo the towel completely. "Roza," he groaned. "If you do that I won't be able to stop myself, and you're still healing, I don't want you to get hurt." I rested my forehead against his chest and calmed my breathing.

"Well you can't come walking in here half naked and expect me not to pounce on you, Guardian Belikov." I said the name in a sultry voice hoping it would drive him crazy. I knew it worked when his eyes darkened and the tent in his towel grew ever so slightly.

"Roza..." He warned.

I laughed at him before giving in. "Fine, fine! I'm going for a shower anyway, I stink."

The shower wasn't nearly as fun as it would have been if Dimitri had joined me, but I knew that wasn't going to happen.

I had just finished getting dressed in Dimitri's room when the doorbell rang and I heard Zmey's elaborate voice drift up the stairs from the hallway down the stairs. Dimitri took my hand and led me downstairs, where Abe was waiting for me at the bottom of the steps.

He only seemed to hesitate for a fraction of a second before he outstretched his arms and pulled me into a tight embrace.

Every muscle in my body froze for just an instant at the unfamiliarity of the gesture, before I realised this was my father, this is what dad's are supposed to do. I finally let out a breath and wrapped my arms around him. His embrace was surprisingly comforting.

"I'm sorry." I had no idea why the words came from my mouth, but once they were out I couldn't stop them.

Abe pulled back ever so slightly so he could look me in the eye. "You have absolutely nothing to apologise for, Kiz. You should never have been dragged into my mess in the first place." After a few more shared words we were ushered into the living room by Olena where the rest of the family were sitting around the room, all seemingly waiting for a story of what happened. And so I clung onto Dimitri's hand, took a deep breath, and explained what happened.

No one interrupted, except for a few gasps of shock, it felt good to finally get everything off my chest, I had been keeping so many secrets locked up from them, and it had been killing me to deceive them all this time.

A small, stupid part of me worried that they would be angry with me after everything I had done, but the Belikova's reaction was quite the opposite. I was swarmed with hugs and kind words, even a few tears were shed, I was overwhelmed with the amount of love one family could give, I felt privileged to be able to experience it, even for such a short amount of time.

Paul wandered into the room then and the mood immediately brightened with his presence. "Are you staying with us forever now Auntie Roza? I really hope you can!" He said with a hopeful twinkle in those eyes of his which were identical to his uncles.

I bit my lip; I had no idea how to answer him. Dimitri squeezed my hand before speaking up for me. "Auntie Roza and I have to go back to America soon Pauly, but I promise we'll come and visit again when we can." I looked up at him as he spoke; now I was the hopeful one.

Vika spoke up next. "When do you guys have to leave?" I didn't miss the disappointment in her voice, Vika and I had become good friends since I'd been here despite all the drama that had been going on, and I know she'd miss her brother.

"I actually booked our plane tickets this morning; our flight is in two days." Damn, that was soon. The atmosphere took on a solemn feeling after that, and Abe soon bid us all farewell, promising he would visit again before we had to leave. Dimitri and I soon excused ourselves and went to bed, despite being unconscious for so long, I was tired.

It's crazy to think that at one point I was actually dreading coming to Russia with Dimitri, so much has changed since then, and although I can't wait to see Lissa and all my friends again, I knew I would miss Russia and the Belikov's more than I ever thought I could.

Dimitri and I were in bed, I was tucked safely into his side. He might be asleep, but I needed to hear from him again that we'd definitely come back here soon.

"Dimitri?" I whispered into the darkness.

"Hmm?" He replied sleepily.

"Do you promise we can come back to Baia again? You still want me to come back even after everything that's happened since I've been here?" I asked almost nervously.

He ran his fingers through my hair in a comforting gesture. "Of course we can come back Roza, I don't think my family would ever forgive me if I never brought you back." He said.

I didn't need to respond, his answer was enough to satisfy my questioning.

I soon fell asleep peacefully, knowing I would wake up in the arms of the man I loved.

 **There we have Chapter 27! I really hope you enjoy reading this chapter, I enjoyed writing it! As some of you may be aware, this story is kind of coming to an end, I'm not sure I'll be able to take it much further once they get back to the Academy, and so I have been thinking of ideas for the next story I'm going to write. I have always wanted to write my own take on what happens after 'love fades, mine has.' And I've been thinking a lot about it and I think that's what my next story will be based around. But I love to hear from you all so please let me know if you have any ideas for potential future stories, and whether that sounds like something you would want to read. Once again thank you so much for reading and sticking with me, especially to those of you who have followed, favourited and reviewed. Please let me know what you think, thanks again for reading!**


	28. Chapter 28

**Dimitri's Point of View.**

The next two days passed in a blur, now Roza was back up and on her feet, we spent as much time as we could with my family, making the most of our time before we had to leave for the Academy again.

I hated to admit it, but I seriously had no idea how I was supposed to keep my hands off Rose for the next few months. I had no doubt that we would have a few stolen kisses during practice, but I just wanted to shout my love for her from the rooftops.

I had gotten so used to holding her hand in public, and waking up with her warm body in my arms; I didn't know how I would live without it.

I didn't voice any of my concerns, of course. Rose had enough to worry about at the minute without my uncertainties plaguing her mind.

We had all just finished our final meal together, when Rose excused herself to go and pack her bags for tomorrow, I told her I would join her soon.

I had just finished helping Mama with the washing up when she broke the comfortable silence we had been working in.

"Dimka, can I speak with you for a moment before you head upstairs?" She had her loving smile lighting up her face, I sure would miss her.

"Of course, Mama." I said as I pulled a chair out for her and took a seat of my own.

She cleared her throat and began talking, she seemed almost nervous, which was very unlike her. "It's been so good having you and Roza here Dimitri, I'm so glad you have her in your life."

I had no idea where this conversation was going. "Thank you, Mama; I'm glad you like her too."

She smiled once more, and almost looked like there were tears forming in the edges of her aging eyes. "Mama, is everything okay?" I said while taking her hand into my own.

"Everything is more than okay, Dimka." She said while she pulled something out of her pocket. When she placed it onto the table in front of me, I saw that it was a small velvet box. My chest tightened. She opened the box. "This ring has been passed down through our family Dimka, my grandmother gave it to Yeva, and Yeva gave it to me. Babushka and I both agreed that you should have it, and give it to Rose."

"Oh Mama, it's beautiful." It truly was. It was a gold band with three dazzling diamonds set in a line, I could almost imagine Rose wearing it already. "Are you sure you want to part with it though?" I felt horrible asking, but I had to be sure she was giving it to me for the right reasons.

"Yes, Dimitri. Me and Yeva have been discussing it for some time, and you know I'd never be able to give it to you without her approval. But Roza has been a part of this family from the moment she walked into the door. And she makes you so happy, Dimka, anyone can see it."

"Thank you, but Mama, Roza hasn't even graduated yet." I hated to admit it, but I knew Roza wasn't ready to get married yet; we would have to wait until she had graduated and we were living together.

"I know, Dimka. But at least you will have it for when the time is right. You two were made for each other, and one day she will wear that ring." She took my hand once more and put the closed box inside it, I slipped it into my pocket.

"You're right. Thank you so much Mama, this means so much to me, and when the time comes I know it will mean the world to Roza that this ring was yours." I said while pulling her into a tight embrace.

"You are welcome, my son. I am so proud of the man you have become." She said before kissing my cheek.

I thanked her once more before heading upstairs and into mine and Roza's bedroom .I opened the door to see my bedroom looking like a bomb had hit it. I couldn't stop my eyes from widening. Rose looked up as I walked in, her hair was tied in a bun on the top of her head, and she was wearing nothing but one of my shirts, which fell down to her knees. She was surrounded by clothes.

"What on earth are you doing Roza?" I asked, letting a hint of amusement fall into my voice so she knew I wasn't annoyed with her.

"I'm packing of course!" She exclaimed. "I have no idea how I did this before; I just can't seem to fit everything in this stupid bag!" She said while angrily tucking a stray strand of hair behind her ear.

I couldn't help but laugh at her. "Don't laugh at me Mr. Perfect; I know you packed like three days ago."

"There's no harm in being prepared Roza. Come on, let me help you." I said while gently pulling her hands away from where they were stuffing clothes into an already overflowing bag. She huffed out a breath before falling back onto the bed.

"Firstly, it helps if you fold the clothes before putting them into the bag, Roza. It means they won't get creased, and they all fit together better." I carried on folding her clothes and putting them into the bag, I could feel her eyes following my every movement, and I just hoped she was watching what I was doing so I wouldn't have to do this for her next time.

I finally zipped up her bag and raised my eyes to meet hers, only to find her smiling mischievously at me.

"I have never seen a bag packed by a neat freak before, it was interesting." She said in a teasing tone. I rolled my eyes and sat down on the bed next to her.

"You're welcome, Rose." I said in a sarcastic tone.

She took one of my hands and held it between both of hers, her hands were so small compared to mine, she was so fragile and yet so strong. "Was that sarcasm, Comrade? You've been spending _way_ too much time with me."

I smiled and pulled her into my lap before lightly kissing her. "Too much time is not enough time spent with you." I felt her smile against my lips as she threaded her fingers through my hair. I traced my hands up her smooth legs until the travelled up the shirt she was wearing and rested on her bare stomach. I felt her shiver at my touch and I couldn't help but feel a sense of satisfaction that I could still get that reaction from her.

She pulled away after some time and rested her forehead against mine. "I can't believe we have to leave tomorrow. I'm excited to see everyone back home, but I'm going to miss everyone here so much." I sighed and brushed my thumb against her cheekbone.

"I know Roza, but you'll feel better once you're back with all of your friends, and we can come back once you graduate, if you want." I assured her.

"I suppose you're right, I really hope we can come back soon, it's been better than I could ever imagine." She said as she climbed off my lap and got into bed while yawning.

"Me too, Roza, me too." And it was true, I couldn't imagine my home without Roza in it now, she was part of this home just as much as anyone else now.

We both went to bed soon after that, we had to be up early in the morning to leave for the airport, and that would be hard enough for Rose, so it was important she got a good night's sleep.

Soon we would be back at the Academy, back to being student and mentor. I had to keep reminding myself that it would only be for a few months, we've lasted a lot longer than that before so God knows we can last a few more months until we leave the Academy for good.

I fell asleep soon after my Roza did, it was hard to stay awake when I was in my own personal heaven.

 **So there we have Chapter 28! I wrote this chapter really quickly so I'm sorry that it's short! Thank you so much to everyone who has followed, favourited and reviewed this story, I appreciate every single one of you! I'll try and have the next chapter up soon. Please let me know what you thought of the chapter, I really hope you enjoyed it!**


	29. Chapter 29

**Rose's Point of View.**

Saying goodbye to the Belikov's was one of the hardest things I've ever had to do, and I've faced a lot of difficult challenges in my short life. There were many tears shed and hugs given, even Yeva seemed to have tears in her eyes when she hugged me goodbye.

Vika was the hardest to say goodbye to, she had made me feel so at home here, she had become such a close friend, and I would really miss her. "Promise we'll have weekly phone calls, Roza." She begged before pulling me into a bone crushing hug, I promised her we would still talk all the time.

Paul was next; he leapt into my arms and sent me stumbling back into the nearest wall. "Sorry Auntie Roza, I'll just miss you so much." He mumbled as his bottom lip started to wobble.

"I know Paul, I'll miss you too."

It was even harder to watch Dimtiri's goodbyes with his family, if I was going to miss them, then surely he would even more. For some reason it made me feel almost guilty that we had to leave.

Olena was driving us to the airport, so thank God I didn't have to say goodbye to her just yet, her farewell would surely be the hardest of them all.

And so I swallowed past the lump that had formed in my throat as I climbed into the back of the Belikov's old car. And I didn't let myself look back through the rear-window, even though I knew the family were all waving us goodbye from the side of the street. Surely, if I saw them all waving goodbye, I would jump out of the car and refuse to go back to America at all.

I was also grateful that Abe wasn't here to see us off, saying goodbye to that many people at once would have just been overwhelming. Abe came round yesterday to say goodbye to Dimitri and I. It was strange how much our relationship had developed since I'd been here, I didn't even know he existed before I came here!

Despite the difficult goodbye I shared with _my dad,_ I had a feeling I would be seeing him again, he was a mysterious man, and I got the feeling he had a habit of turning up unexpected.

Dimitri and Olena were making small talk in the front of the car while I simply stared out of the window watching the trees fly past.

I was pulled out of my daydream when I felt pressure on my thigh; I looked up to see Dimitri looking back at me with concern in his eyes. "Are you alright, Roza?"

I nodded before I started speaking. "Yeah, just going to miss Baia, that's all. I'm sorry we have to go back." He smiled sympathetically at me.

"I know Roza, I'm sorry too." He said before turning back and facing the front of the car.

Olena spoke up then. "I've packed you both some blackbread, I know how hungry you can get Roza, and it's such a long flight."

"Thank you, Olena. You've been so good to me."

"You're a part of our family now Roza, whether you realise it or not." She said her tone motherly and comforting.

"Things sure will be boring for you guys without Roza there getting into trouble." Dimitri said with a teasing tone to his voice. I leant forward and smacked his arm, making him laugh even more.

The rest of the journey went much the same way, until we had reached the airport and it was finally time to say goodbye to Olena. I took a deep breath and steeled myself for how difficult this was going to be before climbing out of the car.

Dimitri got the bags out of the boot of the car while I pulled Olena into a fierce hug, I couldn't stop the tears from falling. "I've never hugged my own mother like this before, Olena. You've been more of a mother to me than she ever has, and it means so much to me." I whispered as we clung to each other tightly.

"I know, Roza. And you are like a daughter to me, I'm so glad you are a part of our lives." She said, and I could tell she was being completely honest.

It was time for Dimitri to say goodbye to his mother, I knew it would be difficult, and so I took a step back and averted my eyes, wanting to give them what little privacy I could.

The love of my life pulled his mother in for a tight hug, and I knew she was crying again. "Make sure you look after each other." She said, before they both spoke rapidly in Russian to one another. Damn, I need to learn Russian.

We watched Olena drive off and then it all became real, we were going back to America.

I sighed and looked up to Dimitri's face, I could tell he was putting on a brave face, but I knew how difficult the goodbyes were for him too.

I stood up on my tiptoes and pressed my lips to his. I was about to pull away when he snaked his hand into my hair and held me closer for another moment. "I love you, Comrade."

His smile lit up the whole airport car park. "I love you too, Roza, more than you could possibly know." I smiled and looked away; I could feel myself blushing ever so slightly. I had never been someone who was easily embarrassed, but when it came to Dimitri I was a blushing mess.

I hopped out of his embrace and took his hand into my own instead, where we made our way into the airport.

Going through security was always the worst and dullest part, I always felt nervous going through the scanner-thing, even though I knew I had nothing to hide or be worried about. I would have been worried about our stakes getting through security, but Dimitri had already explained that they don't set the scanners off; I can't remember how they manage that, I guess I wasn't listening.

The rest was just waiting around to board the plane, that time soon passed as well, Dimitri and I had McDonald's to pass the time.

I found myself clinging to Dimitri's hand at every chance I could, I knew these were the last few hours we would get to spend behaving like a proper couple, soon we would be back to mentor and student, I couldn't bring myself to think about that for too long.

Before I knew it we were boarding the plane, Dimitri being the true gentleman he is, let me have the window seat, and so I eagerly watched out of the window as the trees and the cars became smaller and smaller until they were absolutely nothing. I subconsciously rubbed Oksana's ring on my finger, and I almost felt it throbbing like it did at random times, I knew the magic inside it must have been doing something, and I was once again grateful that she had given it to me.

Seeing the cars and the people shrink into complete nothingness made me realise how small and insignificant our lives are compared to the size of the whole world. I felt Dimitri kill my cheek and I was soon pulled out of my wandering thoughts. "What are you thinking about?" He asked with an amused smile on his God-like face.

I couldn't help but smile back at him, it was contagious. "Nothing." I said.

I could tell Dimitri knew I wasn't telling him the whole truth, and I was grateful he didn't pester me for answers, instead he simply kissed me gently, and it was exactly what I needed right now.

"Why don't you go to sleep, Roza. It's going to be a long flight." He said as he took out a western novel from the pocket of his duster.

I nodded and rested my head against his shoulder; I began reading the book along with him, but found my eyes closing on their own accord before I got to the end of the first page.

It felt like I had only just closed my eyes when Dimitri gently shook my shoulder and began pressing light kisses to my neck. "Roza," He muttered in my ear. "We're landing soon; I thought you might want to look out the window again." I smiled and thanked him.

"I can't believe I slept for so long, you're very comfy, Comrade." He simply chuckled and smiled.

I once again stared out of the window as we descended through the clouds and suddenly we were approaching the ground. I couldn't help the smile that pasted itself onto my face as we hit the ground, it was exhilarating.

Dimitri kissed me as I turned to face him. "Welcome home." He whispered against my lips.

"Is it home?" I asked before I could think about what I was saying.

He frowned ever so slightly before speaking. "Of course it is."

I sighed but didn't say any more.

Dimitri held me against his side as we exited the plane, as well as while we were waiting for our luggage to come around the carousel. I think Dimitri secretly wanted to make the most of our time together before we went back to the Academy, we certainly made the most of it last night.

Dimitri and I had just walked out of the airport, still holding my hand, when suddenly Alberta came into my line of sight. Why the hell was she at the airport? I ripped my hand out of Dimitri's.

I saw him turn to face me with a look of concern on his face, I had seen her before he did. "Alberta?!" I shouted.

She was already smiling at me when I shouted her name, crap, had she seen Dimitri and I holding hands? She walked towards us at a brisk pace and opened her arms out to me; I quickly walked forward and hugged her tight. I hadn't realised how much I had missed her. "It's good to have you back, Rose." She said as she pulled away.

"It's good to be back." I lied.

She stepped back and shook Dimitri's hand; they both had smiles on their faces despite the formal gesture. "It's good to see you, Belikov."

"You too, Petrov." He replied.

"For God's sake, Dimitri, how many times do I need to tell you to call me Alberta?" She asked with a teasing tone in her voice as she took my bag and started pulling it to what I assumed was the car we would be driving back in.

"How come you're picking us up?" I asked curiously.

"Well, classes don't start for another few days, and I had the night off anyway so I thought I'd save Belikov paying for a taxi and drive you myself, I was looking forward to hearing about your trip anyway." With a knowing glance over her shoulder.

Dimitri coughed awkwardly before changing the subject. "How is the Princess doing?" He asked Alberta as we got into the sleek black car.

Alberta and I looked at each other and both rolled our eyes at the same time. "You know she's fine Dimitri, I have a pretty efficient way of checking her wellbeing." I said in a teasing tone as he turned around to playfully glare at me.

"I see some things never change." Alberta commented.

The playful chatter went on as we left the airport car park and began driving down familiar roads back to the Academy.

Lissa knew I was coming back home today, and I could feel her excitement pulsing through the bond, I figured now would be a good time to check in on her. I took a deep breath and slipped into her mind, the next time I blinked I was looking through her eyes, she was in her dorm room back in the Academy with Christian, Eddie and even Adrian, and they were all eagerly awaiting my arrival.

Seeing them all there waiting for me made me realise that it wouldn't be so bad being back in America, sure I would miss Baia and I knew that would always be a form of home to me, but I had come to realise that wherever the people I loved were, that was where my home was.

 **There we have Chapter 29! I hadn't meant for this chapter to be so long, I had meant to end it as soon as they landed, but I got carried away! That does mean that the next chapter will most likely be shorter, and I think that Chapter 30 will most likely be the last one! Thank you so much to everyone who has favourited, followed and reviewed this story, I appreciate every single one of you! I'm so excited to start writing my next story! Please let me know what you thought of the chapter, I really hope you enjoyed it!**


	30. Chapter 30

_**Author's note**_ _: First of all, I just want to apologise it took me so long to update! I started college again and was experiencing some serious writers block. So I do also apologise if this chapter isn't up to standard, I really wasn't sure how to finish the story off, but I'm really looking forward to writing my next story! Thank you so much for reading and for all your continuous support._

 **Rose's Point of View.**

We finally pulled through the grand steel gates of the Academy in the early hours of the morning, meaning the winter sun was shining high in the sky, and most of the students were fast asleep in their beds. Not including my friends, of course, who were eagerly awaiting my arrival.

My leg was bouncing up and down as I sat uncomfortably in the back seat of the sleek black SUV, I could barely keep still I was so excited to see my friends.

Lissa was sending so much excitement through the bond, I was struggling to stay out of her head, it took a lot of concentration, so much so that I hadn't even noticed when we pulled up to a stop inside the academies garage.

I blinked and saw Dimitri's loving face turned to face me. Concern and love shining brightly in his beautiful bottomless eyes. "Ready?" He asked with a small smile on his face as Alberta climbed out of the car. I cleared my throat and nodded, I couldn't help but smile back at him.

By the time I had unbuckled my seatbelt, Dimitri was already out of the car and opening my car door for me, he outstretched his hand, and I eagerly took it. He and I both knew I didn't need any help getting out of the car, but I would take any excuse I could get to touch him. His hand held mine for longer than what would be acceptable of a mentor and his student, but with no one around, I really didn't care.

He reluctantly pulled his hand away from mine as Alberta passed us our bags from the back of the car.

I practically ran through the door out of the garage, and stopped in my tracks when I saw my friends waiting for me under the shade of the oak trees lining a path.

I heard Lissa's scream before I saw her charging towards me, I dropped my bags on the floor and opened my arms, she threw herself into my awaiting arms before I could take a breath and embraced my best friend into a bone crushing hug.

I heard her sobbing before I felt her tears wetting the side of my face and before I knew it I was crying along with her. "I missed you so much Rose!" She mumbled against my shoulder, her words muffled by her sobs.

"I missed you too, Liss. You have no idea how much I missed you." I said truthfully, which only made us both cry harder.

"Jeez, Rosie. I don't think I've ever seen you cry before, it's not a pretty sight." Christian Ozera's sarcastic voice met my ears and I shot him a killer look over my shoulder. His eyes widened slightly and he raised his hands in mock surrender.

Lissa finally let me go, and I turned to face Christian, ready to give him a piece of my mind. But much to my surprise, he was holding his arms open with a warm smile on his usually cold face. I stepped into his arms and was surprised with the comfort I received from the embrace.

"Thank you for looking after her." I whispered low enough so only he could hear.

I felt him tense slightly until he relaxed once more. "Thank you for looking after yourself, Rose. And we both know you kept an eye on her. I know you would have been straight back here if anything happened." He whispered back near my ear. "Besides, it's been boring without you." He said a little louder so everyone could hear, that cocky grin was back on his face.

Eddie stepped up to me next, he threw his arms around my waist and swung me around in a circle before placing me with my feet firmly on the ground once more, to say I was surprised by the gesture would be an understatement. I had been worried about Eddie, after losing Mason I was worried he would struggle with school life, but like me, he has made it through. "Glad to have you back, Rose. Kicking the other novice's asses is getting way too easy; I've missed having some real competition."

I was spun into someone's arms in such an intimate way I almost thought it was going to be Dimitri. Adrian's arms slipped around my waist and I could do nothing but hesitantly wrap my arms around his shoulders. Dimitri was talking with Eddie and Alberta but I didn't miss his eyes flicker towards Adrian and I.

In that moment I wanted to shove Adrian off, but I could tell he had missed me, and to be truthful, I had missed him too. "Little Dhampir, I'm so glad you're back." He muttered.

"It's good to be back, I hate to admit it, but I've missed this place." I confessed, making him chuckle.

"You and I both know that's not true, the cradle robbers aura is practically glowing and don't get me started on yours." I gave him an exasperated look and playfully shoved him away from me.

We all stood for a few minutes talking, Lissa had so many questions for me about my time in Russia, and it was hard for me to keep all the gory details to myself, both about Dimitri and everything else that happened. I didn't want them to worry about me.

I let out a yawn that I had been desperately trying to hold in. Alberta was the first to notice. "Alright, it's about time you all went back to your dorms, you two must be tired." She said, motioning towards Dimitri and I.

Lissa hugged me again while she said goodnight, and we promised to eat breakfast together tomorrow and catch up properly. I was so happy to see her again; it felt like a part of me was missing when I was so far away from her.

Dimitri said he'd walk me back to my dorm while Alberta escorted the Moroi back to their dorms. My heartbeat sped up at the mere thought of being alone with him again.

We had only been back at the Academy half an hour and I already hated that I couldn't hold Dimitri's hand. Our hands kept brushing up against each other as we walked in comfortable silence up to my room, Dimitri even insisted on carrying my suitcase up for me.

I was struggling with the lock on my door when Dimitri brushed a lock of hair behind my ear, bringing a smile to my face.

I finally got the door open and stepped inside, it felt like year since I had been inside my small dorm room, I hated it at times, but it was home.

Dimitri put my suitcase down near my bed before shutting the door behind us.

He took a step towards me and cupped my face in his hands, tilting my chin up so I was looking up at him. "Are you okay?" He asked, his voice rough.

I subconsciously bit my lip while I thought about how to answer; his eyes flickered down as he watched the movement. "I'm fine; it's good to be back and to see everyone again. But I miss Baia already. I don't know how you leave them every time."

He smiled sympathetically. "It's always hard leaving my family behind. It was easier this time though."

I frowned at that. "Why was it easier this time?" I asked.

His smile seemed to light up the whole room. "Because I had you."

I leant up on my tiptoes and pressed my lips to his. His arms slipped around my waist, pulling me against him. I slipped my arms around his neck and tangled my fingers through the soft ends of his hair.

I lost track of time as our lips moved together. We reluctantly pulled away but Dimitri kept me safely in his arms. "I suppose I should go and let you get some sleep." He said, but I could tell he didn't want to leave.

I pouted. "Can't you stay here?" I asked as I batted my eyelashes at him.

"Don't tempt me Roza. You know I can't stay, I would if I could." I knew he was finding it just as difficult as I was, so I shouldn't make it any harder for him.

"I know, you're right. I'll miss you though." I admitted.

"I'll miss you too, but I'll see you tomorrow."

"We're still going to keep practising together, right?" I asked, almost nervously.

"Of course, Roza. Not that you really need the extra training, if only so I can get you alone." He said seductively as he dropped his arms from their place around my waist and took a step towards my dorm room door.

He had just put his hand on my doorknob when I stopped him. "Dimitri?"

He turned and looked towards me again. "I just wanted to say thank you, for taking me with you, and for everything that happened while we were there." He smiled at me once more. "I think everything is going to be okay now, as long as we're together." I concluded.

He nodded in agreement. "As long as we're together. Goodnight, my Roza."

 **There we have it! The story is finished! I can't believe I have actually finished my first proper story! I just want to thank every single one of you who have taken the time out of your day or night to read this story, and also to those of you who have favourited, followed and reviewed the story. I really really hope you enjoyed the story, and I'm sorry if you didn't! I am also sorry if the ending wasn't quite what you wanted, this is the first ending to a story I have written, and I really wasn't sure how to do it!**

 **My next story should be up and running soon enough, once I have thought of a name for it and written the first chapter!**

 **I also just wanted to say that my thoughts are with all of those who are affected by all the natural disasters that have been taking place recently, and that I hope everyone is doing okay.**

 **Thanks again.**


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